Supt. Barresi announces 5th- and 8th-grade
writing scores
will not be part of A-F this year
OKLAHOMA
CITY (Aug. 28, 2014) — In an
abundance of caution, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Janet Barresi
announced today the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) will withhold
fifth- and eighth-grade writing scores from the calculation for the overall
grade of this year’s A-F school report cards.
Some districts
expressed concern about the writing test scores earlier this summer when they
saw many instances of across-the-board scores of the same numerical value from
testing vendor CTB-McGraw Hill. Preliminary figures indicate about 130 of
approximately 430 contested test scores were changed, which represents about
less than 1 percent of scores for all Oklahoma fifth and eighth students tested
for writing.
After further
analyzing tests sent back to the testing vendor, combined with other factors,
Barresi said she would rather there be no question of the validity of the A-F
report cards.
“When compared to
previous years, we are not seeing strong variation in the overall percentage of
changed writing test scores when re-scored. Nevertheless, we don’t want there
to be even a shadow of a doubt that our school report cards are accurate.
“A-F is our utmost
tool in transparency as we report the academic achievement of students in local
schools. Parents and community members use this information to help them see
where their schools are excelling and where they need more help.”
This school year
was the first time that fifth- and eighth-graders took operational
passage-based writing tests requiring them to use evidence to generate a
persuasive argument. The
scores would indicate that many students did not have experience using passages
to support their original writing, and instead they copied large sections of
the passages provided.
Across-the-board
numerical scores also are unusual. Although CTB expressed confidence that tests
were evaluated accurately, Barresi said she was determined not to compromise
the legitimacy of the A-F school report cards.
She said the
decision to not include writing scores in the overall A-F report card grade in
no way diminishes the importance of writing or the need for strong writing
instruction and a writing exam.
“Writing is a
critical part of literacy and one of the most important skills a student must
learn,” Barresi said. “No matter if students are going to college or into a
career after high school, they must be able to express their own ideas in
writing.”
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