SEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428
E-MAIL: mccaleb4thdist@aol.com
WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com
SEVEN A. McCALEB
103 ALVERADO DRIVE
LONG BEACH, MISSISSIPPI 39560
PHONE & FAX: (228)-868-8428
E-MAIL: mccaleb4thdist@aol.com
WEB SITE: www.mississippiwebsite.com
July 5, 2001
By MARY KAY DIRICKSON
THE SUN HERALD
Monday, April 30, 2007
I believe our Harrison County Superintendent Henry Arledge should have doubts whether Mississippi students are having trouble with the test.
When a student leaves Mississippi and attends another school, but is told they cannot advance to the next grade level do to there test scores.
When Mississippi is no longer 50 out 50, or 49th, 48tn or 47th, in the nation on education. But in the top 10 of schools in the nation, then we can be proud of our school system in Mississippi.
GULFPORT - Last spring, almost every student from the second to the eighth grade took the new Mississippi Curriculum Test.
Testing it the best way to see how students are learning.
If no testing is conducted then students are just passed through the school system.
But problems with the test led Coast superintendents to protest the reliability of scores to the state Department of Education, the state Board of Education, the Commission on Accreditation and some state legislators.
I would complain also if my state was 50 our of 50 or 49th, 48th, or 47th in the nation.
Complaining about the test knowing the test was going to be administered is a poor excuse.
"We have grave concerns regarding CTB/McGraw-Hill's ability to provide, at this time, the quality of testing materials and reports essential to give all of us a true assessment of Mississippi education," said the letter, signed by Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium chairman Tom Clark and consortium executive director Dewey Herring.
Tom Clark, is he any relation the Eric Clark, The Secretary of State?
Dewey Herring, is he any relation to Richard Herring, Director of the Harrison County Building Code Office?
Please email me if you know.
I feel comfortable that CTB/McGran-Hill was in compliance when administrating the test.
"The main issue among the grave concerns with
the Mississippi Curriculum Testing Program is that unclear directions caused
severe inconsistencies . . .
I would as all of you will need to know what the grave concerns are before making a judgment on the Mississippi Curriculum Testing Program.
The letter praised the state Department of Education's staff for being helpful and responsive, but it sharply criticized CTB/McGraw-Hill, the company that provides the TerraNova and the customized Mississippi Curriculum Test.
I can't believe that our Department of Education was so totally in the dark about the testing being conducted throughout Mississippi.
If the Department of Education was so concerned why didn't these complaints surface prior to the testing.
The TerraNova compares Mississippi students to a national norm while the MCT evaluates whether students are ready to move to the next grade.
Again, I must say, we (Mississippi) should not be 50 out of 50 states in education.
Being last or almost last each year is embarrassing enough, but to complain about testing is another matter.
The letter claims that test administrators were inadequately trained, the test format was confusing, testing materials were delayed, the test was not customized and other inaccuracies made the test invalid.
I am wondering why there is not a response from CTB/McGraw-Hill, I would like to know why all of these problems happened.
There are two sides to every story, and we are only getting one side.
Few companies, lots of money
http://ctb.com/aboutCTB/index.shtml
click here
CTB/McGraw-Hill is one of four major companies that writes and scores standardized tests in 40 states. This year, Mississippi will pay it almost $2.5 million to administer the tests.
I am sure the $2.5 million is our taxpayers money being spent.
I would hope out Department of Education would know and understand all aspects of the testing procedure.
The growing demand and the labor-intensive job of writing and evaluating state-specific tests has put a burden on the testing companies, but students and teachers pay when testing companies make mistakes.
There has to be a reason for the many mistakes being made, and there also has to be a remedy for the mistakes.
The New York Times reported that in New York City, bad scores from CTB/McGraw-Hill forced nearly 40,000 students to attend summer school. Administrators and principals of "failing" schools were fired. Test scores also were inaccurately analyzed in Tennessee, Indiana, South Carolina, Wisconsin and Nevada.
Like I stated before, I would have to know the other side of the story to make a judgment call.
But some Coast superintendents said they were sympathetic to the company.
Why aren't these superintendents name listed, I would like to know which one's were sympathetic.
"There are only four or five testing companies," said Gulfport Superintendent Carlos Hicks. "We're taxing their ability to do it all right."
But how much help is Mississippi giving, It sound too me that the Department of Education does not want to be tested at all.
"There were some logistical problems, but they'll be worked out in time," said Harrison County Superintendent Henry Arledge.
I hope so, with $2.5 million taxpayer dollars at stake their should not be any problems.
Others are more frustrated, pointing out that while Mississippi may be doing its first round of testing, CTB/McGraw-Hill has been in the testing business for years.
I can agree with the statement.
"The testing company didn't have good, accurate information," said Mike Ladner, superintendent of Hancock County Schools. "It was just a pain. It didn't seem like there was any coordination."
Mike Ladner, is he any relation to Marlin Ladner, Harrison County Supervisor?
Please let me know, if you know
Since the tests are standardized teat the information should have been simple.
I can't speak for the coordination because I was not there.
This year's tests will not affect the progress of students. Their scores, which will be released to districts later this summer, will be the baseline. Students taking the test in spring of 2002 will be promoted based on those scores and district accreditation levels will be set in 2003.
I will request a copy of the scores from the tests, but I will get the run-around as I always do.
Getting information, even though the, "Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983," was pass by our legislature to solve problem when requesting information.
Most elected officials and state agencies will not provide information unless it is in there favor to do so.
If you will go though and read my web pages off my web site: www.mississippiwebsite.com you will see that I have requested information many time, but with no results.
Contract talks under way
Clark, superintendent of the Picayune schools and current chair of the consortium, said the group's letter was timed to coincide with contract negotiations with CTB/McGraw-Hill.
It is always good to get ahead of the game, it should not matter when negotiations begin.
"We knew they were in negotiations with
Good idea, lay your cards on the table, and get those important answers needed.
Clark emphasized, however, that he was confident that CTB/McGraw-Hill will be able to fix the problems that occurred this year.
Clark is placing the blame totally on CTB/McGraw-Hill, is this the right thing to do?
The Gulf Coast Education Initiative Consortium consists of administrators for public and private schools in Mississippi and Louisiana.
http://www.biloxidiocese.org/prodevel.htm
click here
Executive Director
Mississippi Association of School Superintendents
111 E. Capitol Street, Suite 350
Jackson, MS 39201
Office: (601)592-6277
FAX: (601)592-6275
Mary Kay Dirickson can be reached at 896-2105 or at mdirickson@sunherald.com
STEVEN A. McCALEB
COMMENTARY
MY OPINION