New test score labels seek positivity, ditching the term ‘standard not met’ for ‘below basic’

Students work in the computer lab at Cuyama Valley High School after taking the annual state standardized tests, in a file photo. Student scores have been ranked in one of four categories on California’s annual tests in math, reading and science: Standard Exceeded; Standard Met; Standard Nearly Met, or Standard Not Met. “However, our focus should be on providing clear descriptions of these labels so that parents can understand how well their children are performing in school, recognizing that a state assessment is one way to measure that.” Given that grades, teacher feedback and comparison with peers can be subjective or vary from class to class or from school to school, “the standardized score and its label might be important in shaping how well students and parents understand the students’ skill levels relative to a common standard,” said Sean F. Reardon, professor of poverty and inequality in education at Stanford. Teachers and schools can convey information to parents much more frequently and with more nuance than a state test report.” Testing debates; low achievement California’s Smarter Balanced test is computer-based. “The proposed changes to these achievement level descriptions would make the data more confusing and misleading.” Calling scores Foundational or Inconsistent “will only serve to obfuscate the data and make it even more challenging for families and advocates to lift up the needs of our most underserved students and ensure they have the support needed to thrive.” An apparent compromise If approved, the new categories are “the most common set of labels across the 50 states,” said Morgan Polikoff, professor of education at the USC Rossier School of Education, who was not involved in the decision.