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We never have time to meet. Sure -- we have email, but then we have to forward copies of any meaningful discussions to everybody so they can comment and forward to everybody again... I'm sure you see the problem. Think of this as an ongoing department meeting where RESPECTFUL and COURTEOUS discussion can occur.
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5 comments:
My biggest problem with the administration of the PSSA's this year is that morning classes always fall behind. Between the delays and PSSA's, my 2nd and 3rd period classes probably lost at least 7 or 8 classes. Meanwhile,
4th, 5th and 6th periods never lose classes. When you have three 7th grade classes, this turns into a dilemna, they all get out of sequence, which makes life much more difficult for the teacher.
You point is certainly a valid one, Greg. I did make some administrators members of this blog, so maybe they could verify what I believe to be true. I think I heard somewhere that 4th, 5th and 6th periods had to left alone because they were lunch periods. Hopefully, an administrator will shed some light on this in the next few days.
Scheduling for testing works great in the elementary and at SPJ, since all the grades 3 - 8 test. Those schools can use a 1 hour, 1.5 hour, or 2 hour delay type schedule. This way all classes meet though a bit shorter. This cannot be done at the three HS, though it might be a bit easier for Coughlin - some grades test, others do not. I think overall, the general way we tested at GAR worked well, but that does not help Greg's problem. I would assume that 4 - 6 periods are not moved due to lunches. Perhaps we can rotated 1-2-3 and 7.
During this year's testing, I went to some of my sections while testing, just to walk around and observe how they were doing and the environment. Many students were working, though they needed encouragement. Unfortunately, some teachers were not efficient in administering the test and keeping a good testing environment. Some teachers had the students sitting practically on top of each other when there were many empty desks and room to spread out. Further, some teachers were not walking around making sure students were working properly. Sad to say, I think we need to have in-service instruction on how to administer standardized tests, going over every detail. Some people are taking the role too lightly.
AMS (Alan, right?), your last comment is exactly what the proponents of mass testing cite -- the test environment varies from room to room. I think all the people making the decision to test in rooms were aware that there would be some rooms that were less than ideal test conditions. What nobody was sure about was how many rooms would have this environment. One per school? 10? 20? It was decided that we would assume that the majority of teachers would do a good job proctoring. If anyone can shed some light on the number these rooms, I would be interested in it.
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