Beware of the back-to-school testing success trap

Guest post by Michael Soskil - Crossposted at A Teacher's Life for Me


At our first teacher work day today, our Superintendent shared some data from the previous school year.  Most related to difficulties the district is facing due to budget cuts, as most public school districts are these days.  He also shared that according to a recent study by the Scranton Times our district has been identified as having the sixth most economically depressed student population out of the 37 districts in northeastern Pennsylvania based on free and reduced lunch data.  More than 50% of our student population qualifies.

As a way to turn the discussion more positive, he then shared that the same paper has determined that our student achievement was fifth highest in those 37 districts based on scores from last year's state test results.

I have to admit that for a moment after hearing that I allowed myself to fall into the trap of feeling proud and enthusiastic about those scores.  After all, isn't it great to hear that you and your colleagues are doing a good job, especially if it's printed in the local newspaper?

Then I caught myself.
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