Big Trouble for High-Stakes Tests

Dr. Donald C. Orlich

Science Mathematics Engineering Education Center

Washington State University

Pullman, WA 99164-4237

September 17, 2002

There is a rousing debate concerning the use of high-stakes tests to assess school children grades K-12. The "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" requires all states to meet a federal ukase for student "Adequate Yearly Progress Targets." The targets must be stated in percentage gains. (The latter appears to violate logical analysis and statistical canons.) Robert L. Linn and Carolyn Haug published a most important paper in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, (2002, Vol. 24, No. 1. pages 29-36). Their study, "Stability of School Building Accountability Scores and Gains," examines school building test scores over a four-year period on the Colorado student assessment—very similar to the Washington Assessment of Student Progress (WASL). Following is a direct quote from their conclusion.

The performance of successive cohorts of students is used in a substantial number of states to estimate the improvement of schools for purposes of accountability. The estimates of improvement, however, are quite volatile. This volatility results in some schools being recognized as outstanding and other schools identified as in need of improvement simply as the result of random fluctuations. It also means that strategies of looking to schools that show large gains for clues of what other schools should do to improve student achievement will have little chance of identifying those practices that are most effective. On the other hand, schools that are identified as 'in need of improvement' will generally show increases in scores the year after they are identified simply because of the noise in the estimates of improvement and not because of the effectiveness of the special assistance provided to the schools or pressure that is put on them to improve. (p. 35).

The Colorado study shows the futility of mandating educational achievement by legislative fiat and the ill-thought idea of using penalty-driven high-stakes tests to enhance educational achievement. The Washington state legislature must re-evaluate shifting the $113 million spent on the WASL when it has virtually no impact on student achievement. These discretionary funds should be invested in proven methods of instruction, such as reduction of class size and providing optimal learning environments for all children.

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