Measuring Growth

Mondays are soccer practice days. Which means that us parents stand at the edge of the grass, six feet away from each other and make small talk while our children run up and down the field. This particular Monday my conversation with another mom moved from game schedules and soccer gear to our actual lives. I learned that she is also in education, serving as an assistant principal at a local school.

One of the commonalities of public schools everywhere is that spring brings two things: planning for next year, and standardized testing. It’s one of those weird “out of body” time periods in school administration where you are equally split between diving deep into planning the future, while simultaneously making sure everything in the present is running as smoothly as possible.

I was super curious about her thoughts around testing this year, both the expectations and the logistics of it all (as pandemic mitigation strategies and obstacles are in full effect). In fact, my questioning and her answering lasted the duration of practice, yet I was left with so many thoughts. As I walked my sweaty eight-year-old to our car I couldn’t help but continue to think about schools and assessment; one question dominating my thoughts: What should we be assessing, and why?

A quick glance around any social media platform will show that administering academic standardized assessments during the nothing-close-to-ordinary 2020-2021 school year is quite a contentious issue. There is one argument that testing students managing life during a pandemic is nothing short of abusive. The opposite argument would be that we need a way to capture what the students have learned and areas that may need additional support in order to help. I find myself wondering how we got to a place where the results of a singular academic assessment have so much weight and evoke so much anxiety.

In Georgia (where I live), schools receive a College and Career Ready Performance Index (CCRPI) score between 1-100. In a nutshell, this number serves as a school’s report card, impacting funding, housing prices and the level of attention a school receives from its district and board of education. Of the four elements that are evaluated to determine a school’s CCRPI three are directly tied to the outcomes of annual standardized assessment. I am confident Georgia is not alone in emphasizing standard testing results, which makes the anger, confusion and hostility towards testing students this year understandable. There is a lot of pressure to perform.

If you click a little farther into the Georgi’s CCRPI website, you will find reference to a school’s climate score. This score takes into account the result of parent, student and staff surveys, attendance, discipline data and other related factors. Basically, this rating communicates how engaged the people are that fill the halls and classrooms of a school. It tells us about the human experience in that building. What may not be as well known is that the climate score does not factor into the overall CCRPI. you click a little farther into the Georgi’s CCRPI website, you will find reference to a school’s climate score. This score takes into account the result of parent, student and staff surveys, attendance, discipline data and other related factors. Basically, this rating communicates how engaged the people are that fill the halls and classrooms of a school. It tells us about the human experience being in that building. What may not be as well known is that the climate score does not factor into the overall CCRPI.

Huh?

This brings me back to my earlier question: *What should we be assessing, and why?* We know that student engagement, connection to school and feelings of hope directly impact student attendance, behavior and academic achievement. We also know that teacher engagement, connection to school and feelings of efficacy directly impact teacher attendance and retention. In other words, schools are evaluated by one of the many possible results of a schools effectiveness or ineffectiveness, rather than by the systems and programs that are in place that determine those results.What if we put as much emphasis on school climate as we do on academic outcomes?

- There are schools where students feel alone. They have lost hope and can’t think of a single teacher that cares for them.

- There are schools where parents feel ignored. They are overwhelmed by the jargon and “edu-speak” and struggle to find a way to become a partner. They only hear from teachers when something is wrong.

- There are schools where teachers are spent. They feel like their voice doesn’t matter, and that their efforts go unnoticed.

If ever there was a reason to become angry, to get energized and called to action, this is it. School climate is the foundation of academic achievement, yet it is presented as the lesser of the two data points. What if we flipped that? What would happen if we analyzed, adjusted for, and monitored school climate, prioritizing how it feels to be in schools? What would happen if we cared for the hearts and heads of everyone who enters our school buildings knowing learning only occurs after relationships are built? What would happen if we took what we learned from schooling during a pandemic to forever change the way we look at assessment?

Soccer practice picks up on Wednesdays. I think I might show up a little early to find a comfy spot along the grass. My new friend and I have a lot more to talk about.