Phoenix Niewidok Kalisa Mitchell Brad Stagowski Anne Tyler 10/4/13 MAP Proposal: Equity Among Standardized Testing?

No Child Left Behind and the tests that it has produced are a hot topic in education these days. The Indiana Department of Educations execution of this act, as we all know, was the development of the ISTEP test. Standardized testing has been a lightning rod for criticism and public dissatisfaction with it is at an all-time high. With our generation, at some point in our lives we have experienced taking standardized tests. We are familiar with the format, the time and practice it takes for preparation, and the material found on the actual tests. But, are these tests all cracked up to what the image they portray are? We believe that these tests leave an unfair disadvantage to minority groups and those who do not practice American culture. This is not without good reason, as West Lafayette School Corporation Superintendent Rocky Killion (2013) states, ...atrisk students are placed at greater risk because of the lack of equity in educational systems across the country. Unless all students receive the same quality of education, standardized tests cannot effectively measure student academic progress. The real question is, are all races of students receiving that much needed equity in their classrooms? If one is to compare last years ISTEP scores from West Lafayette School Corporation with that of its neighbor across the river, Lafayette School Corporation, one will find quite a difference: West Lafayette excels on the tests with 91.1% of students passing (the third highest percentage in the state of Indiana), while Lafayette falls behind with just 75% of students passing (Loizzo, Moxley 2013). Now, one must take many variables into account when considering this difference in data. It

Phoenix Niewidok Kalisa Mitchell Brad Stagowski Anne Tyler 10/4/13 does not make much sense that two school corporations located in the same vicinity with access to similar resources (such as partnerships with Purdue University) not score at least similarly on standardized tests? Both schools contain significantly different test scores. This is when we must look at the make-up of the student body and the cultural differences within the communities that they originate from. Clearly, there are two factors that stand out among these results: ethnicity and population. Lafayette School Corporation, at an enrollment of 7,037 students as of last year, is roughly three times the size of West Lafayette School Corporation (its enrollment being only 2,138). The ethnic make-up of the student body is just as much of a contrast as its population. As of the 2011 - 2012 school year, the Lafayette School Corporation student body is 57.4% White, 21.9% Hispanic, 12.9% Black, 0.7% Asian, 0.4% American Indian, and 6.6% other. West Lafayette School Corporation, on the other hand, is 66.1% White, 4% Black, 5.2% Hispanic, 19.7% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, and 4.7% other (National Alliance for Public Charter Schools: Students by Race and Ethnicity, 2012). This difference in population density and diversity implies that these two communities may have a different set of cultural norms. This could indicate that these two groups may not only learn in different ways from one another, but there may be alternative ways of determining what they have learned that are more effective than standardized testing. Perhaps it is the cultural background of the students of West Lafayette that has simply conditioned them to be not necessarily better learners, but better test takers than those in Lafayette.

Phoenix Niewidok Kalisa Mitchell Brad Stagowski Anne Tyler 10/4/13 Again, there are many variables to consider other than this and possible explanations for these contrasting scores. If these tests are being designed without taking into account the multicultural aspects of learning, it is of poor judgment to use them to determine the path of their entire educational and, possibly even, professional life. It creates an unfair learning environment for those of different cultures and the tests do not represent the full potential of a young childs mind. Standardized tests like these are used across the country to place students at an early age into different tracking programs that can have a major impact on not only what level of education and academic rigor they are exposed to, but what they view as their own place in society. As a group, there is a list of solutions we have come up with that could potentially help this unfair issue among the education system. Ideas such as eliminating standard testing itself, using some of the time spent on preparing for these tests to focus on other aspects of students learning or the classroom in general, or not specifically directing the test in general towards a specific class or race. For example, not all students in the classroom have the same style of learning, everyone is created differently. If these standardized tests are directed more towards those who have grew up under American culture, those who have not may have an unfair disadvantage on these tests. In A Fathers Lament by Lester Gibson, states the school district blames poverty and poor parenting for the failure rates. But Gibson blames institutional racism - teachers, he says, have low expectations of minority children. We believe that in some schools, minority students already come into an environment where they automatically are not give the same education advantage or opportunity on these tests and education in general.

Phoenix Niewidok Kalisa Mitchell Brad Stagowski Anne Tyler 10/4/13 Questions and the curriculum found in schools present day seem to be more biased towards American culture and a certain direction of questions they ask.

Another action that would be beneficial to take a stand with would be further investigating this potential problem. Proposing that a letter be written to the Indiana Department of Education, and maybe even taking it out of state too, inquiring as to what efforts, if any, were made in the design of these tests in making it as approachable from a multicultural perspective as possible. Another more hands-on approach in investigating this issue further would be to survey a sample of students that have completed these tests. The sample would accurately reflect the ethnic make-up of both schools and would inquire as to how prepared and confident they were in taking said tests. One could also have a part of the survey in which the students would describe how they feel would be an ideal way of testing both their knowledge and skills and then compare the resulting responses. Follow up interviews with promising responses could then be carried out at this time to further explore these individuals perspectives and ideas for change. Overall, we see standardized testing failing to incorporate a multiculturalist perspective that creates a positive and equal advantage for all different types of students and we would like to change that. Citation: Killion, R. (2013). Standardized testing's flaws. In EDCI 285: Multiculturalism & Education (p. 21). San Diego, CA: University Readers. Loizzo, M., Moxley, E. (2013, September 13). 2013 Istep Results Released. Retrieved from http://wbaa.org/post/2013-istep-results-released Students by Race and Ethnicity. (2013). Washington, DC: National Alliance for Public

Phoenix Niewidok Kalisa Mitchell Brad Stagowski Anne Tyler 10/4/13 Charter Schools. Retrieved from http://dashboard.publiccharters.org/dashboard/students/page/race/dist rict/IN-29/year/2012 Students by Race and Ethnicity. (2013). Washington, DC: National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Retrieved from http://dashboard.publiccharters.org/dashboard/students/page/race/dist rict/IN-15/year/2012 "Standardized Tests: The Interpretation of Racial and Ethnic Gaps." Standardized Tests: The Interpretation of Racial and Ethnic Gaps. La Griffe Du Lion, Volume 2, Number 3, 9 Mar. 2000. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.