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Many struggling students in high schools throughout New Jersey must take test-prep classes in place of electives like music or art, according to The Record.

With all students required in the state to pass the High School Proficiency Assessment in order to graduate, those deemed at risk of failing must often enroll—sometimes semester after semester—in intensive review courses that use workbooks supplied by testing companies and instruct them in test-taking strategies.

While critics of standardized testing decry the trend as yet another example of curriculum narrowing, educators in New Jersey appear to have more mixed feelings.

"It's all about the tests—it's unfortunate, but that's the way it is," said Joseph Mastropietro, a math supervisor in the Hasbrouck Heights district. "The key is we want them to graduate from high school and move on to college."

Mastropietro added that the separate courses have the benefit of allowing teachers in regular core courses to limit the amount of time they have to spend on test preparation.

Others noted that the testing regimen has improved schools' ability to ensure that all kids are at an acceptable skill level before they move on. The focus on tests has "made everyone's job a little more difficult, but I think the kids have these essential skills now, for the most part," said Elmwood Park schools Superintendent Joseph Caspulla.

Posted by Anthony Rebora, teachermagazine.org at 3:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A California elementary school with high percentages of low income and minority students has seen dramatic test score gains as a result of an instructional program that combines intensive white board use with choral student responses, according to the Contra Costa Times.

Delta View Elementary's Academic Performance Index scores have jumped 148 points over the past year, reaching 830 this year (on a scale of 200 to 1000, where 800 marks proficiency). It boasts the highest academic-growth rate in its district.

Teachers and administrators attribute the gains to the introduction of basic-skills instructional programs called "BoardMath" and "BoardEnglish." In these programs, teachers present information in a consistent, schematic fashion on a whiteboard, and students are taught to chant problem-solving strategies in unison. (There's a helpful video on the approach here.)

"There's a lot of consistency in language and instruction programs between classrooms," says Dick Nicoll, interim superintendent of the Mt. Diablo school district. "The kids like it because they know they're learning. The teachers like it because it's effective. And the parents like it because the kids are doing better."

Teachers in other schools in the district are now being trained in the technique.

Posted by Anthony Rebora, teachermagazine.org at 1:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)