Contrary to the findings of a Douglas County grand jury report, Douglas County students do not take redundant standardized tests, school district officials argue.
"The Douglas County School District believes in being accountable for student performance," said Douglas County School District Director of Assessments Brian Frazier. "We have an obligation to inform students and their parents of students' progress."
After a year-long study, the 2007-08 grand jury reported that Douglas County students are required to take both state and county standardized tests that are "overlapping and possibly redundant."
"The goal of ensuring that students are getting the skills and information they need to be effective adults is commendable," the report stated. "However, the tests are time consuming and may actually be interfering with learning by taking valuable time from the classroom."
Douglas County students must take the following state-mandated tests: The high school proficiency exams in math, reading and writing (a science exam will be added with the class of 2010); the criterion referenced tests in math, reading and science; an additional state writing assessment; and the norm referenced test.
Frazier said the high school proficiency exams and criterion referenced tests measure student achievement in state-standardized subject areas. Students must pass the high school proficiency exams to graduate.
Results from the high school exams and the criterion referenced tests are used to calculate school districts' adequate yearly progress, as mandated by No Child Left Behind. The norm referenced test is used to make statistical comparisons with other states.
However, Frazier said although state tests serve many purposes, they do not do enough to measure growth.
"They measure attainment," he said. "They are given at a particular time to measure what students know."
In contrast, the district developed a test in the late 1990s to "show growth over time on the same measurement."
Unlike state tests that record a blanket score at a particular time for a broad subject area, the district tests, called measure of academic progress assessments, show student performance in specific areas over a long period of time, revealing where improvement is needed. Test data is divided into three categories for every student: Past performance, current performance and desired performance.
"The district tests provide information to teachers needed to adjust instruction and learning in the classroom," Frazier said.
To graduate, Douglas students must pass both the state and district tests.
The grand jury recommended "eliminating unnecessary testing and simplifying the graduation requirements." But the district is sticking to its guns.
"District tests are required for graduation in areas where the state either doesn't have an exam or the existing state exam does not have the rigor of the district assessment," Frazier said.
He said the district doesn't require for graduation their own test on a subject area if the state test suffices.
"The math district test was eliminated as a requirement for graduation because the high school proficiency math exam had the same rigor as the district test," Frazier said. "We saw no need for students to pass two relatively equal assessments."
The district math test is still used to measure student progress, Frazier said.
"The ultimate goal is student achievement and data has shown that overall our students consistently perform at or above state levels," he said.
