Teacher Testing As a Condition of Certification: Promises, Pitfalls, and Pratfalls (original) (raw)
Related papers
Testing To Improve the Quality of Our School Teachers
Capital Ideas, 1987
This newsletter issue focuses on the subject of mandatory testing of prospective teachers prior to certification. The following questions are discussed: (1) What are the major types of teacher tests? (2) How prevalent are teacher tests? (3) What are the major teacher tests? (4) What problems do teacher testing programs address? (5) What are the potential drawbacks? (6) What are some of the arguments against teacher tests? (7) What legal precedents have been established? (8) What is involved in implementing a teacher testing program? (9) How is teacher testing viewed by various organizations and groups? and (10) Where is teacher testing headed in the near future? A summary of the states requiring testing is presented in a table. (JD)
What's Happening in Teacher Testing. An Analysis of State Teacher Testing Practices
1987
Designed for pol cymakers and programs planners involved with the topic of teacher testing, this publication outl n s issues involved in teacher testing and describes state-level activities in this area. A question-and-answer section provides general information on major types of teacher tests, prevalence teacher tests, problems addressed by teacher testing, drawbacks arguments against teacher testing, legal precedents, test implementation, teacher association attitudes, and the future of such testing. The next section presents six papers considering national perspectives on teacher testing. Titles and authors are: (1) "Historical Perspective" (J. T. Sandefur); (2) "Legal Considerations (Martha M. NtCarthy); (3) "Excellence and Equity" (Bernard R. Gifford); (4) "Teacher Supply and Demand" (Lawrence M. Rudner); (5) "Content and Difficulty of a Teacher Certification Examination" (Lawrence K. Rudner); and (6) "Assessment of the Teaching Skills of Beginning Teachers" (Gary R. Galluxzo). The final section presents state-b/-state descriptions of the status of teacher testing. Appendices present two,papers: "An Examination of Teacher Alternative Certification Programs" (Nancy H. Adelman) and "Technical Issues" (Jame* Algina and Sue M. Legg); a list of competencies required by the Virginia State Department of Education; and a list of state contacts. (CB)
Experiences of Teacher Certification Testing: Bias, Resistance, and Practical Solutions
Association of Science Teacher Ed conference paper, 2020
Preparing teachers to understand and resist the pressures from high-stakes testing is a timely and critical undertaking for teacher education. An increasing trend in teacher education programs is the implementation of high-stakes assessments for teacher certification, such as content and performance assessments. These assessments have been advocated in the context of ensuring that high-quality teachers can enter and graduate from teacher preparation programs. This study examines the impact of a certification test through the eyes of preservice teachers, university administrators, and teacher educators. Interviews with 12 participants were conducted. Secondary data sources, including testing and curricular artifacts and classroom observations, further supported the analysis. The study identified three themes about the perceived impact of the test: 1) ethical considerations of the assessment; 2) failing the needs of preservice teachers, and 3) resistance and coping mechanisms. We will discuss practical considerations for supporting science teachers as they negotiate the pressures associated with standardized testing. Within the changing climate of education, we discuss the urgent implications for teacher education programs and propose research-based guidance for moving towards a more effective and ethical teaching society.
An Update on the Ever Growing Momentum of Teacher Competency Testing
1986
Teacher competency testing for the purpose of screening persons prior to state certification continues to be on the upswing in the United States. Many states have implemented paper-pencil tests, most of which were prepared by Educational Testing Service and National Evaluation Systems. Problem areas to consider when certification tests are used to mandate the quality of teacher education programs include: (1) A wedge can develop between the institution and the state department of education. (2) Teaching toward passing the test may occur when a university's instructional program is being evaluated. (3) Excellent programs are not necessarily reflected by test results. (4) Quality may not truly be improved. Requiring certification tests in hiring procedures includes these issues: (1) Shortages in certain teaching fields can develop where many candidates are not passing tests. (2) Certification complications can result, causing delay for applicants. (3) It is uncertain that, with the use of tests, more competent teachers will be hired. (4) Minorities and protected groups may be disproportionately screened from teaching. Testing programs do not necessarily create a positive national image for a state. Negative images can develop within a state when, for example, some institutions display better test performances than others. Recommendations include exploration and projection of issues and problems. If the decision is made to test, then it should be done "to the minimum." T1Jenty-seven references are included. (CJR)
Legal and Psychometric Criteria for Evaluating Teacher Certification Tests
Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 2005
ABSTRACT Will our teacher certification testing program stand up to a court challenge? What are the critical issues the courts consider in examining teacher certification testing? What do we need to do to strengthen our program legally and psychometrically?
Matching Teacher Training with Teacher Needs in Testing
1984
This study matched teacher and professor perspectives of preservice educational measurement courses. Twenty-eight professors from different colleges in seven states and 377 teachers from elementary and secondary schools in one midwestern state responded via mailed questionnaire in which: professors were asked to assess the emphasis they give to topics in preservice educational measurement courses, and precollege teachers were asked to state the emphasis they believe should be given to the topics. Results of the survey show that both groups gave high ratings to items on preparation of exams and low ratings related to the legal aspects of educational measurement. In other categories, their priorities differed. Teacher priorities were testing activities (the practical concerns of testing), nontest evaluative activities, and application of test results. Professor priorities were statistics, standardized test issues, and general use cq. !xam results. Implications of these results are discussed. (Author/BW)
PsycEXTRA Dataset
National Research Council (U.S.). Committee on Assessment and Teacher Quality. Testing teacher candidates : the role of licensure tests in improving teacher quality / Committee on Assessment and Teacher Quality, Center for Education, Board on Testing and Assessment, Division on Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, National Research Council ; Karen J. Mitchell ... [et al.], editors. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index.
education policy analysis archives, 2001
Given the high stakes of teacher testing, there is no doubt that every teacher test should meet the industry guidelines set forth in the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. Unfortunately, however, there is no public or private business or governmental agency that serves to certify or in any other formal way declare that any teacher test does, in fact, meet the psychometric recommendations stipulated in the Standards. Consequently, there are no legislated penalties for faulty products (tests) nor are there opportunities for test takers simply to raise questions about a test and to have their questions taken seriously by an impartial panel. The purpose of this article is to highlight some of the psychometric results reported by National Evaluation Systems (NES) in their 1999 Massachusetts Educator Certification Test (MECT) Technical Report, and more specifically, to identify those technical characteristics of the MECT that are inconsistent with the Standards. A second purpose of this article is to call for the establishment of a standing test auditing organization with investigation and sanctioning power. The significance
Teachers and Testing: Implications from a National Study. Draft
1984
This paper presents findings from a study of teachers' and principals' testing practices. The research included a nationwide survey, exploratory fieldwork in preparation for the survey, and a case study inquiry on testing_costs. Teachers and principals share misgivings with some of the research community about the appropriateness of required tests for some students, and about their quality and equity. Teachers seem to use test results temperatelyas one of many sources of information. As a result of required testing, more time is spent in teaching basic skills and less attention can be paid to other subject areas. The survey also Suggests that those in the education and testing communities have paid far too little attention to the matter of teachers' assessment skills. Teachers essentially receive neither training nor any kind of supervision nor any supporting resources in the development of their own tests. Given their frequency and importance at the elementaryschool level, the findings also suggest curriculum-embedded testing
2000
Massachusetts is a newcomer to teacher testing, and prospective teachers in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts were not tested until April 1998. The unintended consequences of the state's teacher testing policy are examined through a qualitative case study and a document review of media reports, higher education institution reports, in-house activities at one college, and a review of the teacher certification testing literature. The intent of the Massachusetts program makes sense, but nearly 60% of prospective teachers failed the first test. Only 6 of the state's 55 certified programs reached the 80% pass rate required to retain accreditation. In the wake of these findings, teacher preparation programs are beginning to teach to the test. In addition, colleges may be reducing their applicant pools in order to increase their pass rates. Overall, the weight of the test may be changing what and how teacher education programs teach in ways that may not be in the long-term best interest of new teachers or their future students. The degrading manner in which teachers have been viewed in the publicity surrounding the low pass rates may discourage college graduates from joining the teaching force, and this impact may be especially severe on minority students. The push for quality is a worthy goal, but it needs to be tempered with the state's demand for more qualified teachers. (Contains 2 tables and 32 references.) (SLD) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.