April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
CATHOLIC EDUCATION
Schools step back from Common Core
Schools step back from Common Core
At a news conference at St. Madeleine Sophie School in Schenectady, Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger said that, "long before the advent of Common Core, Catholic schools in this Diocese were known for their high academic standards."
The announcement, he said, "signals a recommitment to and recognition of what we have always done best: educating the whole child - body, mind and spirit."
Catholic Schools superintendent Michael Pizzingrillo told The Evangelist that "there's no issue with the [Common Core] standards. We're not walking away from the standards; we're taking a step back from the assessments."
In explaining the Diocese's decision, Mr. Pizzingrillo said that, for about the past decade, the Catholic schools in the Diocese have participated in the New York State elementary and middle school assessments, including math and English-language arts (ELA) assessments for grades three through eight.
Perception vs. benefit
Mr. Pizzingrillo has met repeatedly with principals over the past two years about the assessments. He stated that "the diocesan Catholic Schools Office, along with a variety of stakeholders, have evaluated participation in the New York State Assessments and found that, although its schools have used test results appropriately, the negative perception of its potential use did not allow parents and teachers the ability to benefit from its participation in all grades.
"Taking into account the concerns of parents and their role as the primary teacher of their children, we have decided to make a shift in our participation," he concluded. "Beginning next spring, our schools will participate in the New York State assessments in grades three, five and seven only. Grades four, six and eight will not participate in the state's common core tests."
Mr. Pizzingrillo termed the change "a stepping back from the New York State Assessments, coupled with a stepping forward with an achievement-based assessment we have chosen for ourselves.
"Although the standards of the Common Core itself are good, the collateral pieces have caused great strife for families and teachers alike. It's time to put a renewed focus back on our students, where it belongs," he said.
Assessments' future use
Since the schools, beginning this year, will administer the New York State Assessments only in grades three, five and seven, this means the tests will not serve as annual evaluations of student performance, but rather as benchmarks of longitudinal student progress over a set number of years.
Catholic schools will administer the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (recently renamed the Iowa Assessments), a nationally-normed, multiple-choice assessment, to all students in grades three through eight in November.
"This new testing protocol will allow our students to be judged against their peers based on what they've actually learned, rather than being judged against a set of state-mandated standards," said Mr. Pizzingrillo. "This is a first step," he added. "We will continue to evaluate the assessments as they affect our students, our teachers and our overarching goal of educating the whole child, and we will make further adjustments as needed."
Rationale
The rationale for continuing New York State Assessments in grades three, five and seven is threefold, said diocesan officials:
• "It enhances the intended use of the New York State Testing Program as a programmatic assessment. The third-grade assessment should now be viewed as assessing each school's educational program from kindergarten to third grade. The fifth-grade assessment should now be viewed as assessing the educational program for fourth and fifth grade, and the seventh-grade assessment should now be viewed as assessing the educational program for sixth and seventh grade.
• "Participation in New York State Assessments has never been used for the evaluation of Catholic school teachers. By stepping away from a year-by-year New York State assessment, the Catholic Schools Office hopes to remove the misperception that Catholic schools are using the data in the same way as government (i.e. public and charter) schools.
• "Catholic schools within the Diocese have varied organizational structures. Some are grades pre-K-through-five, pre-K-through-six and pre-K-through-eight. Testing at the three grade levels provides important programmatic data for elementary schools at a minimum of two grade levels."
To meet the needs of schools and provide timely data to inform instruction, the Diocese's Catholic schools will administer the Iowa Assessment to all students in grades three through eight in November. This norm-referenced assessment will provide valuable information for teachers to use during the current school year with their students.
High hopes
In addition, students in grades four and six will take the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT).
CogAT, Mr. Pizzingrillo explained, is an abilities test that "assesses what students will be able to do in math, ELA and non-verbal areas." Those test results are expected to inform parents and teachers about each individual student's ability, which, coupled with the Iowa scores, "will frame a picture of each student that has not been presented before.
"Students and parents should expect to see a shift in how we tailor instruction to the student during the school year, and for there to be less anxiety about participation in the state assessments," Mr. Pizzingrillo stated.
"Our teachers are exemplary. They work tirelessly for the betterment of the whole child, and I am happy that we will recognize them as the professionals they are by giving them accurate and timely data to address the needs of the students in their classrooms."[[In-content Ad]]
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