A Map of the Universe
If I left the education profession tomorrow, what would I miss?
One thing I certainly would not miss is the emphasis our current system places on standardized test scores, like MAP (Measurements of Academic Progress) and IAR (Illinois Assessment of Readiness.) This obsession with standardized testing is driven by school rankings and funding, a detrimental result of capitalism.
If we use standardized test scores as our sole measurement for student growth, what do we lose?
I found this photograph from March of 2016. It was taken in my classroom at Haven Middle School in Evanston. The third trimester had recently begun. And directly across from me sits a student I care deeply for—here he is totally invested and engaged in his novel. He sits in close proximity to me, at my teacher table.
In the background is another student that I also adore and remember fondly. An independent and brilliant writer with a sweet disposition.
The students I have taught throughout my career are stars in a galaxy, unique and sparkling on their own. Each one is individually stunning, yet they exist as part of a larger whole. A map of the universe.
I came to this profession with the belief that all children are capable of success, growth, and excellence. This core value has not shifted or faded one iota since I started this job in 2010. It is a notion that has only grown stronger and more pronounced each year I spend in the field.
What I’ve learned is that there are many factors—societal, political, systemic, familial, and otherwise—blocking children from achieving. That when kids don’t excel or grow, it is not because they cannot. It is because something larger is at play that stifles them.
I also learned that middle school is one of the most challenging times in many children’s lives. Middle school performance is not indicative of a life’s trajectory, especially for those who struggle during this time.
Just like our students, who excel in profoundly different ways and in different subjects, the same goes for teachers. There is no one way to be a “good teacher.” Yet something stands universal. All incredible, life altering teachers believe in the potential of the the kids in front of them to perform, grow, and excel at something important.
But it is how our educational system defines growth that is disconcerting. And what are the dangers of looking at academic growth in only one context, through the lens of a child’s standardized test score?
This isn’t a new debate. My colleague at Haven used to display proudly on her desk a little button with the message: “You are more than a test score,” printed in black and red. But why isn’t this idea more common, that a test on its own—isolated and imposing in nature—simply cannot tell us the most important information we need to learn about a child?
Standardized tests, in their very nature, are disconnected entities. These tests have their own week, their own schedule. It’s test time, we say, as we command children to put away all semblance of anything fun or engaging. Clear all other materials off your desk and TAKE. THIS. TEST.
These tests are a desolate, freezing island in the middle of the school year. If research shows the best kind of learning is connected to a rich, progressive, and constructive curriculum, how are standardized tests an accurate reflection of what our kids know?
Why haven’t the powers that be developed better methods to evaluate growth in writing? In speaking and listening? In creativity and critical thinking? Even in reading? Perhaps it is too difficult for them to even conceive. Also there is no incentive to make a change.
Save me the argument that tests are an important part of life. That we must learn how to take a test, because tests get us into college and graduate school and medical school and law school. If we are learning to test for testing’s sake, why don’t we just stop putting such extreme emphasis on the practice altogether? This argument is comparable to the idea that we should all just be meaner to kids, because the world is cruel, and they need to learn how to cope. How about instead we just change the world?
I’m an idealist. I get that. But I can’t take too much more of this insane pressure. This narrative that if my kids don’t master one standardized test, they are not worthy, and by default, I am not worthy to teach them.
I’m not sure how much longer I can stomach this unrelenting emphasis on testing.