NIFL-ASSESSMENT 2005: [NIFL-ASSESSMENT:1020] Re: Use of test sc

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From: "Katrina Hinson" <khinson@future-gate.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-assessment@literacy.nifl.gov>
Subject: [NIFL-ASSESSMENT:1020] Re: Use of test scores
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First of all, I agree that teaching the skill is the best thing for any
student.  Each of my students has learned that it's better to learn the
skill sb/c they will need them as they move beyond the program they are
currently in and into college classes. Those of mine that have completed
and come back, often tell my students just how much  those skills matter
and how important they are ..that it's not all about passing at test 
b/c passing the test means little if you have to take remdial classes in
college because you didn't really learn it the first time.

Secondly, I have some comments re: your email commets ..re: GED testing
below the HS level.

I know at my school we are told that we should not be testing anyone on
the GED if they are not at the High School level - especially if they
come in with a low score well below High School (such as 5.2 or 4.4
which we do have a problem with at our school) because for the
performance based areas that should be demonstrated the reporting system
relies on looking at TABE scores, not  GED scores and if there is no
progess in their TABE score, it can actually count against you.  

Wouldn't it make sense, if they can pass the GED Practice Test, to 
Post Test them on the appropriate TABE test to make sure their level
advances as the student is clearly demonstrating it should.  

I've run across the problem myself. I have a student who was at the HS
level on everything but reading, she had a 8.4 grade level placement
according to her TABE and she passed the GED after about 3-4 months of
hard work - she attended classes daily from 8-1, with extremely high
scores, and I've been asked to call her back in to post test on the
Reading portion of the TABE to ensure she has moved up a TABE level. 
She was due to be post test in April anyway but she completed her GED in
FEB- a few weeks before her baby was due.  I also know that we have an
ABE Low class which is geared toward a placement level of 0-3.9 from
which occassionaly students in that level or even in the next level up,
ABE Intermediate, wil be given the practice test and they'll pass yet
when they go take the GED test, they don't...they could miss it by
anywhere from only a few points, to a lot of points.  The GED Examimer
and myself find ourselves asking a lot of questions: such as how that is
possible, especialy if it happens more than once from the same student/
instructor.  The director repeatedly reminds people to make sure that
their students are at the right placement  for taking the GED. We do
allow for exceptions on a case by case basis but it has to be more than
" Student A feels like they can pass the test".  

  I also know that the words "performance based" are being used A LOT
in my program this semester and yet it's still a battle trying to help
instructors who have always assumed that it didn't matter what the
placement score was, whether it was low, intermediate, high or GED etc,
that they were all teaching GED classes simply b/c that was the end goal
the student has.  Helping them to get to that goal in a progressive
stair step manner was never really monitored...and it's kind of hard to
teach people to undo what was improperly learned and done for so long. I
know it depends a lot on how different programs are set up,  I guess.


Katrina

>>> KHennessy@LIMACITYSCHOOLS.ORG 3/24/05 1:01:41 PM >>>





List discussion regarding assessments,

  Here's what I feel is needed with the TABE and all assessments to
better
facilitate instruction both as a group and as individual instruction.
  Each question should be keyed to a specific skill that that question
is
trying to measure, and that skill or skills could be listed in
numerical
order so that if a student missed question number 7 in TABE 7- M
Language
you would know that they may need to review the correct "use of
pronouns"
or "commas in a series" or whatever.
    The TABE gives a correlation chart but it is too general and not
formatted for easy information retrieval.
I made up my own for all of the TABE tests and all of the GED Practice
tests. I am not teaching to the test but rather teaching the skills
that
that student missed.
   What is lacking in the TABE(which most ABLE programs use) is that
grade
level scores do not indicate when the student is ready to take the GED
Practice test. This is why I use skills to measure when a student
should
take the GED Practice test and not TABE scores. I have had some
students
with a grade level score in Language of 5.2 take the GED Practice test
and
pass it and go on to take the Official GED test and pass that also
with
high scores. As of February's testing, our program has 67 graduates
with 42
of them having scores of over 500, and we have 2 with scores over 700.
This
systems works for us.

Kathy Hennessy
ABLE Coordinator
Lima City Schools

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