How did the PARCC go for your child today?

I heard the kids who were in the accelerated math class didn't take a test today because of technology issues.
Another friend told me her daughter took the morning section in the afternoon.
I just wonder if they tested this roll out at all.
They sold it to us as just an hour or 90 minutes of testing and then a full day if school. This was far from that.

In my district at the hs it is being used instead of the HSPA.

Oh, ok, maybe that's true too - it's hard to keep up! @boomie

Graduation requirements for this year. PARCC is not replacing anything.

In my district it seems to be replacing the HSPA which will not be administered this year and was a requirement of graduation in the past.

I stand corrected. But you can use other tests for graduation. You aren't required to use PARCC.

Oops - forgot about PSAT

meandtheboys said:

Placement.

Has the district had any discussion on how, when or if they will use the PARCC test for placement?

At the PARCC meeting, Ms. Grierson stated that this will give the district the opportunity to think through new placement methods.

Also, the recently hired Educational Equity consultant will be evaluating levels & criteria and making suggestions.

I'm curious to see what the district comes up with.

How are students with learning disabilities or ADHD tested? My kid had both problems, back in the olden days, and was always given exta time, as were all kids with that problem. Btw, he is an adult now, with a great career, hope springs eternal, but was very tough going.

emmie said:

How are students with learning disabilities or ADHD tested? My kid had both problems, back in the olden days, and was always given exta time, as were all kids with that problem. Btw, he is an adult now, with a great career, hope springs eternal, but was very tough going.

Afaik, just like they used to be. Students with extended time , I think, were tested separately, in a different room. We had 100+ students testing in the library today.

If a kid has PSAT scores over 40 in both math and LA, why are they even given the test?

BaseballMom said:

If a kid has PSAT scores over 40 in both math and LA, why are they even given the test?

I think that in future years, the PARCC scores will be used to some extent for placement as @meandtheboys stated earlier. So, with PSAT scores over 40, PARCC not required for graduation, but required for placement, maybe?? To me, the other issue with giving the test to some of the students and not others is what do the kids who do not take tests do during that time? I can't imagine any real instruction happening.

We have a situation where our kid will not take the math PARCC but will take the ELA PARCC. He is supposed to report to his regular classes on the days he does not take the test, but I imagine that at least half the kids in those classes will be missing. Not sure why they can't just have delayed opening or some such thing.

aes said:

Apparently @boomie

Yup! I guess people decide who's obnoxious too...or rude. Whatev's

SuzanneNg said:

emmie said:

How are students with learning disabilities or ADHD tested? My kid had both problems, back in the olden days, and was always given exta time, as were all kids with that problem. Btw, he is an adult now, with a great career, hope springs eternal, but was very tough going.

Afaik, just like they used to be. Students with extended time , I think, were tested separately, in a different room. We had 100+ students testing in the library today.

Yes, students with IEP's have testing guidelines. They were the same for NJASK.

This may be a dumb question, because I don't have school-aged kids yet, but are these tests somehow vastly different from other skills assessment tests like the Iowa Assessments? I've read a decent amount about the PARCC controversy, but can't seem to put my finger on how they stand apart and are subject to so much criticism.

Anyone remember the IOWAs? There was another test too. @afa

Edited to add that @debpod is with me on the Iowa!

@annemarie Stanford? Something like that?

There will always be standardized tests. Even in private schools. I administered two different kinds of standardized tests in two different private schools when I was teaching. When I was a kid AND when I administered them, it always just felt kind of like a nice break from the daily rigamarole of school. I know, I'm terrible.

@afa I think those are another variation of the Iowas.
I understand concerns about teachers "teaching the test" and all of that, but I'm just wondering how these are so different and stressful for the kids. I took the Iowas for years and they caused me no concern or anxiety. They were really long, boring and came at the expense of instruction for a period of time. But they were expected, so we took the tests and were no worse off for it.
Not saying concerns are unwarranted. I'm just curious to better understand the opposition to them.

I like standardized tests too, but that's because I'm good at them. If I had test anxiety, it would be a different matter.

CAT test. I feel better now.

I think there were California's and Iowa's. On one test for about 3 consecutive years the reading comprehension passage was about cheesemaking. It was really boring each of the three times it appeared.

We were told that the PARCC was mandatory, that you could not opt out, and made the consequences seem dire if you did not send your child to school on PARCC days. My kid is kind of excited to take the test because its on the iPad. I don't know if they did a lot of prep for the test, but they did roll out the iPads for math class work and some LA stuff beforehand, so the kids got familiar with using the iPads.

I don't care too much about the once a year testing because that seems standard for everyone for years now, but to test some grades in March, and May seems a bit excessive. For the 4th graders, we also have the Science and some other NJ ASK in late May. So many years it seems like after the NJASK is done in May that very little gets done afterward, even though kids are in school through mid-June. Wish they would e test closer to year end.

Getting back to the original question, any other feedback from the kids? The test-takers themselves? I understand there are lots of threads about PARCC the test, opinions, concerns.....etc. For now, just curious to hear from the students what they thought.

Right, the CAT was the California Achievement Test. We took that too.

My mother was a teacher back in the 70s. She had a parent ask why her daughter needed to take the CAT when she wasn't planning to go to California.

My 8th grader thought yesterday's PARCC test it was easy. We will see how he does on the math part.

My concern from yesterday was not the test itself but the fact that it seemed to take up the whole day, while it was only supposed to be for an hour or so. Did anyone have an 8th grader who went to class yesterday at SOMS?

campbell29 said:

I don't care too much about the once a year testing because that seems standard for everyone for years now, but to test some grades in March, and May seems a bit excessive. For the 4th graders, we also have the Science and some other NJ ASK in late May. So many years it seems like after the NJASK is done in May that very little gets done afterward, even though kids are in school through mid-June. Wish they would e test closer to year end.

I think the part in March (more open-response/essay, etc) gets hand-scored (or robo-scored) , and the part in May is multiple choice, so it gets automatically computer scored. In the future, I believe the plan is for the final scores to be provided before the end of the school year (for schools ending in June).

One Newark charter school opens early August and closes shortly after the tests are given in May. The purpose is to have more instructional time before the tests (in an attempt to boost test scores) - as their charter is dependent on demonstrating higher tests scores than the sending public district.

My 8th grader didn't mention missing class....

thanks deborahg - i was just curious.

To answer an earlier question about how PARCC is different - To me a huge issue is that because it is computer-based it is a logistical challenge. If a school does not have enough computers for an entire grade, then students have to be divided into morning and afternoon test groups. The school also has to supply headphones. There is a lot of money spent on equipment for PARCC.

annemarie said:

I like standardized tests too, but that's because I'm good at them. If I had test anxiety, it would be a different matter.

CAT test. I feel better now.

Yes, the CAT tests!

Sure, some kids have test anxiety. Some do well. We all have strengths and weaknesses.

EBennett said:

To answer an earlier question about how PARCC is different - To me a huge issue is that because it is computer-based it is a logistical challenge. If a school does not have enough computers for an entire grade, then students have to be divided into morning and afternoon test groups. The school also has to supply headphones. There is a lot of money spent on equipment for PARCC.

Welcome to 2015. Or even 2005.

We can at least be thankful that our BOE made sure that the district purchased a large number of chrome books a couple years back, and even agreed to increase the tax levy over 2% that year in order to do so. From what I understand, the district has 1 chrome for about every 2 students. Given testing schedules, that should be enough to handle the load.