Florida’s own “the Happy Scientist” Robert Krampf notes some serious problems with the science FCAT. For examples:
Sample Item 2 for SC.5.N.1.6 (page 32), which assesses the following benchmark.
SC.5.N.1.6: Recognize and explain the difference between personal opinion/interpretation and verified observation.This sample question offers the following observations, and asks which is scientifically testable.
The petals of red roses are softer than the petals of yellow roses.
The song of a mockingbird is prettier than the song of a cardinal.
Orange blossoms give off a sweeter smell than gardenia flowers.
Sunflowers with larger petals attract more bees than sunflowers with smaller petals.The document indicates that 4 is the correct answer, but answers 1 and 3 are also scientifically testable.
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I wonder how many students got “wrong” answers on the FCAT because their teachers taught them too much. How many “F” schools would have higher grades if those scientifically correct “wrong” answers were counted as correct answers. How many “B” schools would get the extra funding that “A” schools get, if those scientifically correct “wrong” answers were counted as correct answers?
It’s worth a few moments to read about the other troubling issues he’s discovered. Krampf is getting noticed, which is great! The Gradebook blog and BoingBoing both picked up on it.
Alethian Worldview (& by now probably other blogs) caught it as well.
Personally, I hope Florida ditches the FCAT soon and forever – but if we can’t do that, can we at least replace the test-writing people/company?
It is really great to see what teachers and parents have suspected and sometimes actually seen in released test items (teachers who proctor the FCAT are not allowed to actually look at the questions – part of the whole surreal scene of FCAT testing is the “security” part) becoming public knowledge.
Aren’t all the questions testable? Psychologists test how attractive different pictures are all the time. Sure, you can’t come up with a purely objective measure, but you can measure people’s reactions.
Security is more important to the state than whether the test is good. I’m sure we could have a good test if the deadly combination of paranoia and ignorance wasn’t deeply seated in legislators. It’s covered with a thin candy shell of superlative coping skills so you don’t notice.
I teach International Baccalaureate Biology and within a couple of days after every test I am required by the International Baccalaureate Organization to review the examination my students just took and, if I consider a question to be inaccurate, inappropriate, confusing, or just not a good question, I notify the parent organization by email. Flagged questions are reviewed and, if necessary, thrown out BEFORE examinations are scored. Every year the IBO generates three brand new, equivalent examinations and all of those examinations are available for purchase within a few months including the markschemes (aka rubrics aka scoring guides).
Compare that to Florida. I have been teaching high school biology in Florida for 18 years and have never seen a complete high school FCAT science examination released for scrutiny and/or review. There is no practice test from the publisher for the Biology End of Course exam currently in progress. I have been told if I allow my students to discuss the exam in my presence my job is in jeopardy.
I worked on the “rangefinding” committee once, the group that set the scoring guidelines for the late, unlamented high school science FCAT, and some of the questions were so awful we didn’t even try to develop scoring guides for them. We were looking at the questions after approval by multiple committees and after field testing. The questions we tossed (NOT part of our job, incidentally) got THAT far without being flagged as inane or just bad biology.
Incidentally, my 10th grade honors students took their end of course examination on April 30th and May 1th, 22 days before the last day of classes. Our starting date last August, you will remember, is mandated by the legislature. With days taken out for other, intermediate evaluation, tests and the FCAT I had 150 days to teach my syllabus. When we wrote the standards we planned on a 165 school day year. Those three weeks were desperately needed.
The system is so dysfunctional at so many levels it is no wonder so many of our students need remediation in college.