[BHS etree] SUPT: Testing Letter to BUSD Families from Superintendent Michele Lawrence

[bhs at idiom.com]

To the Families of Students Attending Berkeley Public Schools:

The spring testing season will soon begin, so I would like to explain to
you the reasons we want your students to participate in the STAR test.
Although I share the concerns many parents have about the nature and use
of our state and national testing process, I ask that you consider the
facts.

Our goal is to educate every child.  Thus test results are an important
measure to ensure that our efforts to improve instruction have been
fruitful.  Comprehensive testing data, including what the state requires,
help us track our effectiveness in meeting the academic needs of our
students. Since many of our schools are small, a handful of students not
taking the test impacts our ability to make accurate comparisons among
groups of students and schools. We diminish our ability to learn from
those teachers and schools who make gains in the data and ultimately
compromise our effectiveness with kids. These tests do help staff at the
site level, and at the district level, know where to target efforts and
resources for instruction. They also inform us about the performance of
BUSD students in comparison with other students in the state.

Additionally, while I am no fan of the majority of the “No Child Left
Behind” legislation, the law requires every school to have a 95% testing
participation rate in every sub group.  The sub groups include every
ethnic group with a significant population at the school as well as
Special Education students and students who qualify for the Free or
Reduced Price Lunch Program.  Failure to test 95% of the students in each
group, even if the school’s overall achievement is high, penalizes the
school, and this has already happened at three of our schools.  It is due
to a participation rate of less than 95% that the district is identified
as a “Program Improvement” district, resulting in the shift of financial
resources away from the school and all students to outside agencies or
private corporations. In essence, local control is lost, and schools and
our district are unfairly labeled as “underperforming” when the district’s
Academic Performance Indicator (API) of 729 is higher than either the
state or county average. I want you to recognize that the exercise of your
legal option to exempt your student from the tests can hurt the entire
school.  Perhaps this is another reason why the law must be changed.

It is important to remember that standardized tests such as the STAR
measure institutions and not individual student progress.  The best way
for you to know how your child is progressing is to be in on-going
communication with his or her teacher(s).

I hope that every family in Berkeley will discuss the spring tests and
determine the best way to help their students do well. Of course, the
time-honored methods of being prepared, well-rested, well-fed and relaxed
are important. Your site principals will be advising you of the specific
details and the schedule for your student’s school.  They are eager to
answer your questions and to help make this a positive experience for all.


Thank you for your attention to this key educational concern.

Sincerely yours,

Michele Lawrence
Superintendent

==========================================

Mark A. Coplan
Public Information Officer, BUSD
510-644-6320
Mark_Coplan at berkeley.k12.ca.us
Berkeley Unified School District
2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way
Berkeley, Ca 94704-1180