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Rumor Mill-5249

Published October 25, 2012

The purpose of this section is to answer any questions parents, teachers or community members might have regarding the school district and to set the record straight in regards to any rumors that might be circulating.

If you have a question or have heard a rumor that you would like for us to address, simply SEND US your questions and we will respond to them in upcoming issues of IN FOCUS. Below are some of the questions we have received since our last issue.

It seems that my children have taken an excessive amount of tests so far this school year. My sixth grader took eight tests in four days at the end of the first quarter. Is this considered normal under the common core curriculum? Also, what is the purpose of doing benchmark testing every nine weeks, and do parents get a copy of what the children are tested on and their results?

It is important to understand the purpose of the testing administered to students in WCS. Some of it is summative, meaning that it gives you a summary of how well your child has mastered the content that has been covered in the classroom.

The benchmark tests, though, are formative, meaning that they assist the teacher in pinpointing skills and knowledge that need to be retaught or reinforced. Those tests help teachers discover misconceptions students may hold, giving teachers the opportunity to correct them right away.

A useful analogy is the GPS that many of us use in our vehicles. We program where we want to go; the system pinpoints where we are starting; and then we get feedback about our progress all along the way. Sometimes, the voice in the system tells us that it is "recalculating" to give us the best information possible to get us back on the most efficient track to our destination. The benchmark tests are our instructional GPS system. They tell us along the way what instructional changes need to be made in order to help students master the skills and knowledge that will make them college and career ready by the time they leave WCS.

Testing, whether it is formative or summative, is rarely fun. It is important, though, for parents to talk with their children about the tests being an important tool that their teachers are using to help students succeed. You are able to see results on the benchmark tests through Parent Portal this year, even though they do not count as a part of the student's report card grade.