I have to weigh on this one!! The CAT6 is a norm-referenced test, which means that 50% of the students taking it HAVE TO FAIL. The test is designed to do this. Here is a little more info. Can all the children score above average?
"Politicians often call for all students to score above the national average. This is not possible. NRTs (norm-referenced tests) are constructed so that half the population is below the mid-point or average score. Expecting all students to be above the fiftieth percentile is like expecting all teams in a basketball league to win more than half their games. However, because the tests are used for years and because schools teach to them, there are times when far more than half the students score above average." - http://www.fairtest.org/facts/nratests.html We have to be very careful when talking about tests. Some states like CA use norm-referenced tests, which means you will always have 50% or so fail. While other states use standards-based or criteria-referenced tests which do not force failing. This is the real reason why NCLB is a problem. We are not comparing the same things when we compare states! I urge everyone to read and understand about the test(s) their district or state gives, so that we can truly understand what the scores of our students mean and don't mean!!! Kristin --- Joan Matuga wrote: However, look at these results for the state tests > for students in my school: 38% of students in > second grade, 51% in third grade, 34% in fourth > grade, 44% in fifth grade, and 28% in sixth grade > are basic or below basic on the state tests. These > % are far, far, far, above the state % for > proficient and advanced. The % figures for the > state of California for basic and below basic are as > follows for Language Arts: Gr2: 53%; Gr3 63%; > Gr4: 51%; Gr5: 57%; Gr6: 59%. These % scare > me. _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org. Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive.
