Kennewick to reduce standardized tests for sophomores

The battery of tests some Kennewick high school students endure is about to thin out a bit.

School board members tentatively agreed recently to eliminate Measures of Academic Progress, or MAP, testing for Kennewick sophomores.

District administrators and the principals of the district’s high schools said the test, which is not required by state or federal mandates, is of limited use in assessing sophomores and getting them the help they need if they are behind.

“I don’t want to do an assessment just for the sake of us getting information,” board President Dawn Adams said a recent school board retreat.

Board members agreed they were in favor of limiting testing when they can and plan to formally approve the change at a future board meeting.

Beginning in kindergarten, students are exposed to a variety of standardized exams aimed at determining growth in learning and ensuring schools are providing a proper education to students.

The performance of students generally is more pronounced from one test to the next when they are in elementary school than when a student gets to high school. As a result, school officials reasoned that other state tests can be used to determine if older students are falling behind.

Some tests are required by the state and federal governments, such as the commonly called SBAC tests in math and language arts that are based on the Common Core State Standards.

Many districts also perform their own testing, such as the MAP, administered in the fall and in the spring, to help guide curriculum and determine what students are struggling and need more help.

Most testing, though, takes place in the spring and requires numerous class periods to complete, taking time away from classroom instruction.

High school students are required to pass certain end-of-course, or EOC, tests in biology and math, as well as the SBAC language arts exam to graduate.

Parents, teachers and administrators have long criticized the growing burden of testing. A review of standardized testing is one of the conditions of the contract between the Pasco School District and its teachers union after a strike delayed the start of school by nine days this fall.

Kennewick Assistant Superintendent Ron Williamson said sophomores in intervention classes would still be required to take MAP testing under the proposal. And it would continue to be used for placing freshmen and for deciding which students need academic intervention.

This story was originally published January 18, 2016 at 9:06 PM with the headline "Kennewick to reduce standardized tests for sophomores."