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Why are CSAP tests hated?

Friday, September 28 at 6:24 PM

This Speakout has not been edited.

By Cathy Mitchell

I don’t understand why many parents (and educators for that matter) dislike the CSAP (Colorado State Assessment Program) test. Having just received my youngest daughter’s results for her eighth grade year, it gives me reassurance that she is learning what she is supposed to - the Colorado Standards.

Unlike subjective grades, the CSAP is an objective test. My understanding is that CSAP was designed by a group including teachers, and the questions are based on standards that every Colorado student is supposed to know, by subject and grade level. When I hear the criticism, “it forces the schools to ‘teach to the test,’” I say “great!” - that’s exactly what the students are supposed to be learning. That doesn’t mean that’s all the schools can teach - each district, school, teacher can add anything they want. But all Colorado students need a common core of knowledge. Doesn’t that seem logical?

So why all the criticism? My perception is that it is a big, misinformation campaign, led either deliberately or not, by many public school educators.

Rather than focusing on the real problem - students who are not proficient in the basics, it’s easier to attack the test. The principal at my daughter’s last school seemed surprised when I mentioned that many parents hated the test (as evidenced by threats to Sen. Spence’s grandchildren, this is not an overstatement). I would urge all educators to be careful how they criticize.

Are there valid criticisms of CSAP? Of course. My main criticism would be that private schools do not have to administer the test. The state of Colorado is charged with the responsibility to ensure that all children get an adequate education. The CSAP is the objective tool designed to measure that - all children in Colorado should take the same test. And the test itself is not perfect, as is no test. It should be reviewed and fine-tuned every year. Critics contend that CSAP is a ‘high-stakes” test. There even was a national conference devoted to the evils of “high-stakes” testing.

High-stakes for whom, I wonder? Certainly not the students. The scores are not even factored into their grades. There is little complaint about the ACT/SAT tests, yet they are what I consider to be truly “high stakes.” As far as I know, CSAP scores are not factored into a teacher’s evaluation and the worst that happens to a school is they get a “bad grade” on the School Accountability Report (SAR). A few schools have closed, then re-opened under "new management.” The faculty are allowed to re-apply, or go elsewhere - their choice.

CSAP has improved education marginally, if at all - but that is not the purpose. The purpose of a test is simply to measure. What will improve education is to take the results, then study what is, as well as what is not, working. Why can two students sit in the same classroom, with the same teacher, one is proficient at the end of the year and the other not? That’s what the CSAP discussion should center around.

Cathy Mitchell is a resident of Centennial.

READER COMMENTS

Why do I hate CSAP? let me count the ways.
No longitudinal tracking of the individual child. Thats right - just try to get information about the areas where your unique child has a weakness so you can help him improve. They can't do it!

Don't even ask for your child's CSAP progress over more than one year!

Want a copy of the Colorado standards so you know what they are testing to? HAHAHAHAHA. Go on, ask your school for a copy.

Cost?!?

This test is used solely to "grade" the school, not the children. It is a waste.

If you want a nationally recognized test that teaches to a competitive standard throughout the USA, use the ACT, SAT and IOWA for lower grades. That way you know for sure that your child is measured not only against local standards but also against the entire nation.

These tests will also give you information about your child' s strengths and weaknesses so he can improve.

That's what it is supposed to be about, the child, right?

Posted by Mom too on October 5, 2007 12:45 PM