| The current presidential election has created a novel | | | | overall score. Since then, everyone has to take the |
| situation for those of us who work with kids with | | | | test regardless of its educational value for the student. |
| special needs. Governor Palin has promised that if she | | | | The great education bureaucracy in their wisdom has |
| is elected to work with John McCain in the White | | | | apparently decided to make everyone take the test |
| House, she will be an advocate for families who have | | | | so that nobody can hide. I think this is an abrogation of |
| children with special needs. As I thought about the | | | | their duties in oversight and now an unfortunate waste |
| possibilities this might present for reform of the special | | | | of valuable time resource for many of the teachers |
| education system, I inevitably considered the TAKS | | | | and students who now have to participate in this |
| testing that goes on in Texas. This is the Texas | | | | TAKS-alt system. I have no idea how scores are |
| Assessment of Skills and Knowledge test that is used | | | | reconciled or accounted for in the broad scheme of |
| to establish minimum standards for passing certain | | | | things or if the scores from TAKS-alt figure into |
| grade levels. The results of the exam are used to | | | | achieving "Exemplary" or "Recognized" status for |
| meet requirements for the federal guidelines in No Child | | | | individual schools and districts. Maybe we can open up |
| Left Behind. | | | | a discussion here and find out? My initial thought about |
| I am just an observer of how TAKS testing is | | | | the situation is why didn't the people in charge just fire |
| implemented, but I may have an idea for Governor | | | | people who were misusing the special education |
| Palin and others to consider. I have watched the | | | | labels? How does it serve the children with special |
| teachers I work with spend countless hours trying to | | | | needs to take TAKS or TAKS-alt? I think this has |
| figure out how to implement TAKS test alternatives | | | | come to pass to satisfy a bureaucratic need instead |
| for the children in the special education program. The | | | | of an educational need. |
| way I understand things, every child has to be tested | | | | The bottom line in my view, is that many of the |
| on subjects and knowledge areas according to their | | | | children in special education are not in school to |
| grade level. therefore, special education teachers have | | | | prepare for college or some kind of career. We are |
| to take knowledge questions that would be on the | | | | teaching them skills of daily living and preparing them |
| regular TAKS test and break down the questions into | | | | with basic knowledge to live a quality life at whatever |
| fundamental skills that would be necessary to answer | | | | level they can attain. Many of the test questions |
| the target question. They do this until they get to a | | | | developed for TAKS-alt are about skills and |
| level of question that would be possible for a specific | | | | knowledge that would be taught regardless of the |
| student with disabilities to answer with a reasonable | | | | existence of the TAKS exam, but the time spent in |
| degree of success. They do this for every child who | | | | developing TAKS-alt for every student is misplaced |
| has an Individual Education Plan in the grade levels that | | | | effort. I also must assume that scores from TAKS-alt |
| are testing. This means that every child with special | | | | testing will be statistically meaningless since every test |
| needs ends up with a different test. This makes sense | | | | is individualized. There is no way to create a |
| since we are talking about children with Individual | | | | standardized test for special education or compare |
| Education Plans. | | | | scores across student results. |
| What does not make sense to me is why teachers | | | | I don't know if Sarah Palin will have any way to help |
| are spending so much time on making up tests that will | | | | bring some sense to the realm of special education, |
| be different for every child and turning that in for use | | | | but we can start a conversation and see where it |
| with standardized tests as a measure of a school's | | | | leads. I welcome comments and feedback for this |
| performance? In talking with professionals in the public | | | | topic. I am not an expert on the law and |
| education system it seems that before TAKS-alt | | | | implementation for No Child Left Behind, but I see its |
| became the rule, some schools were "hiding" poorly | | | | effect in the "trenches" so to speak. For the most part |
| performing students under the special education label | | | | everyone is trying to help the children, but sometimes |
| so that they did not have to take the test or at least | | | | we can't see the forest for the trees! |
| did not have their scores counted toward the school's | | | | |