Sunday, July 15, 2012

Can a Test Capture 'College and Career Readiness' in Early Grades?

This from Early Years:
ACT Inc., maker of the well-known college admissions exam, announced earlier this month that it is working to create a new series of tests to measure how students—as young as 5—are acquiring the skills and knowledge they need to be ready for college and careers.

According to ACT, the tests will become the "first digital, longitudinal assessment system" to measure student outcomes across grade levels. The tests will aim to look at performance both inside and outside the classroom, meaning that academic skills, as well as things such as behavior and outside interests, will be assessed. The information that the assessments provide, says ACT, will help teachers tailor, in real time, the instructional strategies and supports they use to help kids continually build the academic and social skills they need to succeed.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

WHat a bunch of bunk. I have more faith in a kindergarden teacher's ability to identify a student's future than a test. Why are we even considering buying into this in a practical much less financial sense? First legislators are going to tell teachers what to do and now testing agencies are going to tell teachers.