It’s that time of year again! MCAS.
When I visit districts throughout the state at this time of year, the tension is practically tangible. Teachers are on the edge of their seat as we work on professional development goals, anxious about spending time away from their students. Every minute counts! The pressure is felt from the students who are aware that the test is coming to administrators who are working diligently to support their teachers. There is a scramble to “get it all in.” Which standards haven’t I taught? What is going to be on the test this year? What won’t be on the test this year? Do you have any lessons that will teach that? And even, what can we leave until after MCAS? Educators throughout the state desperately want to be successful as they and their students are measured by the data generated from MCAS results.
There is an opportunity with the shift towards new standards to alleviate some of the stress and scrambling that occurs during the pre-season of MCAS. The standards have been written with goals of focus and coherence, and are meant to be viewed through the lense of learning progressions. We are told by potential new test writers, such as PARCC, that “The PARCC Assessment will focus strongly where the Standards focus and ….. (will reflect thinking) across grades and link to major topics within grades.” As we move into this new reality, we need to be careful to keep these messages at the forefront of our curriculum planning. With guidance about the key ideas, we can apply the standards document to appreciate how ideas grow across the grades.
From the authors of the CCSS in a document that outlines criteria for math publishers:“A drive to break the Standards down into ‘microstandards’ risks making the checklist mentality even worse than it is today. Microstandards would also make it easier for microtasks and microlessons to drive out extended tasks and deep learning.”
And from Grant Wiggins on trying to teach a discrete list of skills, “it is a case of ‘putting the cart before the horse’ when we ask kids to learn parts before seeing or working with the whole ….. As I have long said, it is like not allowing a kid to play soccer until they have mastered 100 paper and pencil quizzes on each soccer bit.”
What is warranted is a look at the big picture – presenting our students with a curriculum that is focused around big ideas, and that builds upon these ideas both within and across grade levels. We need time to develop these big ideas, free from the clutter of too many assessments and the scramble to get it all in. We are told that this is what the new testing is going to reflect. With a well articulated look at curriculum in such a manner, we just may be feeling a bit better facing testing.
Good luck to everyone!
Sue
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