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Aug 2010
- http://discussions.latimes.com/20/lanews/la-grading-teachers/10
- Comment from a reader: LAUSD [Los Angeles Unified School District] looks to finally be moving in the dirction of using CBM. Many school are utilizing DIBELS, which is a system of CBM that targets basic areas of literacy such as letter naming fluency, oral reading fluency, etc. The DIBELS CBM can be used in the beginning of the school year to screen out which students require intervention instruction, group students so that the teacher can more effectively differentiate instruction, and can also be used as a periodic monitoring device to see how the students are responding the regular instruction or intervention program. But literacy is not the only area the CBM has shown promise. It is also has a breadth of reaserch behind it for math. And particular subject area CBM can be developed as well. I would tread lightly with using CST scores as an evaluative method for both teachers and students. Policy makers and decision makers in LAUSD would be wise to review the research on the validity and reliability of testing measures before making any high stakes decisions, as they could very well be jumping to false conclusions if they are relying soley on a CST scores.
- Comment from a reader. The problem I have had with LAUSD for some time now, is the over-reliance on CST [state standardized assessment] scores to make programming decisions for kids. For those of you who do not know, CST testing can take up to a week to administer - each day often requires approximately 3 hours of testing. For many kids they lose interest in the test in the first 5 minutes of day one - since most kids know that their performance on the CST has no impact on their academic grade on their report card. So much of what the CST is testing is motivation and ability to sustain mental concentration over long periods of time, rather than academic knowledge the student has acquired. [Formative Assessment alternative to high stakes testing] Curriculum Based Measurements (CBM) are short timed tests (usually 1-3 minutes) of foundations skills. CBM have shown to be a far greater reliable and valid measure of student academic acheivement than these mega tests such as the CST. A couple of reasons for this is they reduce the impact of motivation and sustained concentration. Another reason they are superior is that they typically target one skill, such as oral reading fluency, so you know what the test is actually measuring. The CST is hodgepodge of skill and academic areas that are very difficult tease.
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