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A LYS Superintendent writes:
SC,
I need some
therapy. We received our STAAR scores today. We saw some slight
improvements in some areas, and some slight decline in others. Of course
what we want to see is significant improvement in all areas. What
troubles us is significant decline in several areas. This comes after we
have worked really hard to assess and revise instruction throughout the
year.
I know what
to do from the ground up, but have never experienced this. What advice
can you give us?
SC Response
There are a
number of factors at play in the shift from TAKS to STAAR. And what confuses people is the vain attempt
to find a correlation between TAKS and STAAR scores. They are vexed by the same patterns you have experienced,
TAKS scores on an upward trajectory while there is essentially no pattern to
STAAR scores. Here is the short
version of why this is the case... TAKS and STAAR are different games, so you
have to change how you play the game.
The TAKS test
was aligned to the TEKS. The TEKS
that were tested stayed primarily in the low to mid-rigor area and from a
pacing standpoint, clustered towards the middle of the year. We had release tests to confirm this
and about 9 years to adjust instructional practices to point where most schools
could get most students to meet minimal performance standards.
The STAAR
test is aligned to the TEKS. The
TEKS that are tested are primarily in the mid to high-rigor area and from a pacing
standpoint, clusters towards the end of the year. And we have no release tests to guide instructional
planning. This means if we do what we have always done (and what was seemingly
working), we are guaranteed to fail at the new game.
ASIDE: This
is like the IRS changing the Tax Code and telling the taxpayer, “Take your best
guess and good luck. Oh, and if you
guess wrong, be ready to lose your savings, house and career.” Remember this when you head back to the
voting booth.
So what to
do? As with so much that we deal
with, the action plan is easy to comprehend and exceedingly difficult to
execute.
1. We have to
teach the right thing. This means we
must follow the scope and sequence with fidelity.
Anything less is unacceptable.
2. Pacing is
now king. Every grade must move at
full speed in order for every grade to cover the content that will be
tested. In short, if the test is
weighted towards days 120 thru 150 of content, we better get there or else our
students will suffer. Note that
inadequate pacing is the hidden cancer of instructional delivery. Almost universally, we start the year
slow and then get slower.
3. The rigor
of student activity must increase.
Which means if we don’t have more students operating at the upper levels
of cognition for longer periods of time, we are only creating the illusion of
forward progress. An illusion that
is shattered when the test results come back.
4. We must
extend time on task, especially for the students who have been exposed to
slower paced, lower rigor instruction for multiple years. This does not mean “During the day
interventions” where we pull students out of the content to catch them up on
the content. This is perhaps the
most asinine practice currently in play across the country. Extending time on task means before
school, extended period, during lunch, after school, extended week and extended
year instruction. And this extended time instruction must be aligned with
points 1, 2 and 3, otherwise don’t bother.
Now some will
say the test is defective (doubtful), or the test is unfair (debatable), or
some students will never achieve at the demanded level (defeatist). What I say is this, “If we know we
aren’t following the scope and sequence, aren’t on pace and aren’t having students
operate at the appropriate level of rigor, then external factors are moot. Because we know that WE are creating a
significant level of slack in the system.”
This isn’t an
indictment, just an understanding that we still have room to step up our game.
The vehicle for achieving this? The implementation and continuously improved
execution of the Foundation Trinity and the Fundamental 5. So your scores are disappointing, it
happens. The adversity you, your staff and your students WILL overcome will
simply make the inevitable success taste that much sweeter.
Think. Work. Achieve.
Your turn...
- Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com! http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5
- Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com! http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook
- Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool)
- Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); NASSP National Conference
- Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation and like Lead Your School on Facebook
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