Morgan County’s school superintendents are taking a stand against what they all call “a flawed system” in the ISTEP test, and have banded together to draft an open letter to county residents, students and teachers telling them as much.
The superintendents got together and decided to write the letter after students’ ISTEP scores were returned. As they had been warned by the state, most scores fell dramatically at schools across the state. Eminence Community Schools superintendent Jeff Gibboney said he believes the test was tied to at least 22 different factors. The high stakes and dramatic drop mean students, teachers and the community at large are being punished for a test the superintendents believe is unfair, inconsistent and is not a true reflection of what their students and teachers are truly capable of.
Monroe-Gregg Superintendent William Roberson echoed Gibboney’s sentiments at the district’s Nov. 10 board meeting.
“IDOE has already said they expect a 25 to 30 percent drop in test scores across the board,” Roberson said. “You have kids crying because they didn’t do well on the test. This test also affects teachers’ jobs. Some teachers’ careers may be at stake. And I’m not the only one who thinks this. You’ll hear this from a lot of superintendents around the state.”
“It is unprecedented,” Mooresville Superintendent David Marcotte said. “When the results came back the frustration the students, parents and teachers were experiencing was too much. We wanted to let them know we support them.”
Marcotte said he’s already heard of one teacher who was going to quit after the ISTEP results were released, but was encouraged to continue when they saw the letter.
Gibboney said it is time for the school superintendents to defend their districts.
“Our job is to be an advocate for our schools and community, and one test doesn’t measure what we do,” Gibboney said. “We needed to take a stand and voice our concerns against a flawed system and a flawed test, and that’s what we did in this letter.”
“It’s important for our teachers, parents, students and leaders to know we believe in you,” Metropolitan School District of Martinsville Superintendent Michele Moore said. “We believe in the quality of our children, our family and our teachers and the state is treating us like we don’t matter. It’s causing everyone undue stress and it doesn’t have to be that way. Enough is enough, this has got to be fixed.”
In the letter, the superintendents mention the inconsistency with which the test was given — some taking it electronically and some taking it with paper and pencil. Also, the scores have been received so late, there is no time for districts to remediate, which means next year’s scores will also be an inaccurate reflection.
“The year is half over,” Marcotte said. “There’s nothing we can do with this data now. To base so many things on these specific results is lunacy.”
Governor Mike Pence visited Muncie schools on Tuesday, and according to the Star Press told teachers and students not to take the results of the ISTEP test “personally.” Moore said that’s not possible.
“Tell that to a student who always passed the ISTEP before and didn’t this year,” Moore said. “Tell that to a parent who’s concerned and confused. Tell that to our teachers who work so hard. They have to take it personally.”
Gibboney said the results of this test will not only affect districts this year, but rather in years to come as people looking to come to Indiana may think otherwise when they see bad test scores from an invalid test
“When they see two thirds of schools have Ds and Fs, you can’t tell me they’re not going to think twice,” Gibboney said. “This has so many ripple effects, there’s got to be a better way of doing things.”
Marcotte wanted to emphasize that the Morgan County school districts are not afraid of accountability.
“Our community should hold us accountable,” Marcotte said. “We have a big and important job. But do it this way, it’s not making any sense. To change the standards and not give us any time to adjust, to prepare, of course the test is going to show that. This is an issue of fairness, for our schools, and our community.”
Moore said it’s a matter of transparency, and policy got in the way of an accurate assessment.
“The whole process was not done with fidelity,” she said. “Kids matter. This is our business. This is our passion. And to think we’re just going to sit back and not say something is ridiculous. ... We need to do something.”