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The Measures of Academic Progress is an online test. Seattle public school students spend about 45 minutes completing each test for both reading and math, in the winter and spring, with an option to test in the fall. The district requires teachers to administer the test before the end of February.(File photo)

Are teachers who refuse to administer a test good role models for students?

January 17, 2013 @ 5:14 pm (Updated: 9:19 am - 1/18/13 )

Is a teacher who refuses to administer a required test a good role model for his or her students?

This month teachers in at least two Seattle public schools say their students will not take a test they believe has little value and is a waste of time.

The flap is over MAP.

Educators have an acronym-laced language that I'll explain briefly because the type of test some teachers object to is important.

There are standardized tests all Washington students need to take, required by law, and high school students need to pass in order to graduate. Those tests are the Measurements of Student Progress and the High School Proficiency Exam. They're referred to as the "mispy" and the "hispy," though the proper acronyms are MSP and HSPE. They replaced the WASL - Washington Assessment of Student Learning.

In Seattle, and many other districts, students take an additional test called the MAP, Measures of Academic Progress. That's the test some teachers refuse to oversee.

Students spend about 45 minutes completing each test for reading and math. They do this at least twice, possibly three times a school year.

The online test adapts to the student's responses. Answer a question correctly and the test presents a more challenging question. Miss a question, the next question will be easier.

MAP does not count toward students' grades. They don't need to pass it in order to move to the next grade level, or graduate.

For some kids, it's nothing more than computer mouse practice.

"Students are motivated by a variety of things. If they feel like something is not useful to them, they tend not to engage," says Jonathan Knapp, President of the Seattle Education Association.

While the test doesn't mean much for students, the district uses it as part of the teacher evaluation process.

"Low growth triggers additional evaluation of the teacher," says Teresa Whipple with Seattle Public Schools. Higher scores lead to "career ladder opportunities."

The education union voted this week to support fellow Seattle teachers who refuse to give the test.

"We spend so much time in testing and using so many resources," says Knapp. "There's only so much instructional time available in a school year and it (MAP) does not provide good feedback."

The MAP test has pointed in the wrong direction from the beginning, according to Garfield history teacher Jesse Hagopian.

"The test was brought to us under an utter scandal," he says. "Former superintendent, the late Maria Goodloe-Johnson sat on the board of the company that made the test and sells the test, that we adopted in the Seattle Public Schools for over $4 million.

It's not me who has a problem with that. It was actually the state auditor who came in and found that to be an ‘ethics violation.'"

Garfield teachers have been getting support from all over the U.S. after Hagopian appeared on CNN earlier this week to discuss the controversy.

"There's a lot of schools around the country under this testing, and testing, and more testing regime that has really served the interests of a corporate driven so called reform movement in education," he says. "So many people are happy to see that Garfield is standing up and saying that education should be much more than just testing."

He suggests student portfolios would be a better way of assessing how kids are doing throughout the school year.

Seattle Superintendent, Jose Banda, suggests teachers work with him to evaluate or improve the test. In the meantime, make sure students take it.

"MAP remains a required element of our overall student testing process. We expect school staff to fulfill their responsibilities and obligations to administer this test in a timely manner," Banda says in a statement.

If they don't, the district says any instances of teachers not giving the test will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis for possible consequences.

Is a teacher who disobeys the superintendent's mandate a good role model for his or her kids in the classroom?

"School is a really complicated thing. We have very important responsibilities in our lives to direct the community in responsible and moral ways," says Knapp. "I think we can all point to individuals, really heroes in our history, who have challenged decisions that have been made."

By LINDA THOMAS

More from Linda Thomas

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Comments (56)


  • Add A Comment

  • librarylady wrote...
    Teachers refusing to test
    January 17, 2013 6:08 pm
    I think the district can mandate a test and that teachers should give it within reason. Behind the scenes at the district level, they can get involved in reviewing the test or editing it so that it is more meaningful. Tests that are given 3 times a year are usually formative tests that are used to guide teachers on what their students still need to learn.Sometimes the test given doesn't match the state standards and becomes meaningless (because it's testing things that are no longer part of the standards) Most teachers wouldn't refuse to give a test unless their concerns about the test were ignored and they felt it was the only way to call attention to the needed change. In our state, we are in the process of adopting the Common Core State Standards which is a huge transition. This has created the need for districts to realign curriculum and assessments which may not match up very well during the transition period. Ultimately I'm sure the teachers don't want to waste their time and students' time in giving a meaningless test. Thanks for drawing attention to this, I think you will factor in to helping the needed change to occur.
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  • Halcyon wrote...
    Why not set up a national Care 2 to gather support
    January 19, 2013 9:40 am
    Go on the internet to Care 2 and you'll collect multiu emails in support.
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  • wannadanc wrote...
    Perfect role model
    January 17, 2013 6:19 pm
    Teaching the students that they don't need to be lemmings jumping of the cliffs in life without ever asking questions and slowing down to THINK!!!! I have been exposed to this testing mentality - back when the WASL was being jammed down the throats of teachers. Same kind of insanity then and now.
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  • fartforce1 wrote...
    YES - its called standing up to do the right thing.
    January 17, 2013 6:22 pm
    Patriots follow the same line of thinking, so do activists who march for rights. On the other you have you have those who always do what they are told and step in line and take orders. You get 6 million dead Jews that way. Gimme freedom.
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  • sportsguru wrote...
    To answer your question Linda
    January 17, 2013 6:36 pm

    No, the teachers could have brought this up in the last union walkout. If they are really about the CHILDREN like they claim to be. This could have been part of the negotiations, they could have asked for more input on what's on the test and how it is administered instead of pay and benefits, classroom sizes etc.

    On the flip side, what happens when the students feel that they are not being taught appropriately or being heard by teachers, what happens when they refuse to take a test they think doesn't accurately reflect and/or is graded unfairly etc....?

    Will the teachers respect the civil dissent in the classroom when they feel like they are not being treated fairly? I doubt it very seriously

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  • maplefish wrote...
    Guru
    January 18, 2013 5:35 am
    Touche! i could not agree with you more.
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  • Mavila wrote...
    The Flap Over the Tests is...
    January 17, 2013 8:37 pm
    ridiculous, of course. The teachers just don't want to be exposed for their shortcomings. It's a general aptitude test. Preparation really isn't/shouldn't be necessary and it appears the test is entirely voluntary besides. The teachers are just doing what they do best - object to anything and everything that might possibly expose them for their weaknesses (i.e., actually teaching their students something sustainably worthwhile).
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  • spuddog wrote...
    Mavila...
    January 18, 2013 10:30 am
    if what you say about the test is true (general aptitude;no preparation necessary) then why is it used as part of teacher evaluation? Here's the problem: how do you insure that students are doing their best and trying their hardest on the test? I'm a retired high school teacher and I can guarantee you that while some students will try their hardest on these types of tests out of personal pride, many will make little or no effort. They see these things either as a waste of time or something that will just point out what they already know, which is that they don't know much. So their poor results can be explained by the fact that they blew it off. This is especially true when they know the test does not effect their grade or anything else. Therefore, the test results are not an accurate reflection of student learning. But, the results are used as part of a teacher's evaluation. Do you think that's fair?
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  • rational wrote...
    The education union voted this week to support fellow Seattle teachers who refuse to give the test.
    January 17, 2013 9:12 pm
    Yet again the unions are putting itself above the education of the students. The teachers union needs to be disolved as it's anti-education.

    So the deal is the teacahers don't want to be held accountable for their performance...peachy.

    Might I point out that most homeschooled students do much better than students taught by union teachers.

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  • wsualumn wrote...
    Rational
    January 18, 2013 6:00 am
    What source do you have that shows that home schooled students do MUCH better than those taught by union teachers? Here are my experiences with the kids that I knew who were home schooled: Our neighbors were tired of being "hassled" by school because of absences and they were being held to The Becca Bill. They decided to home school themselves. That lasted 3 weeks. When I grew up, we had a child that was a classroom terror. The parents blamed the school and teacher. They home schooled their boy. He still lives at home at the age of fifty and can't hold down a job. His social skills are horrible. Now I know there are good stories as well. The singing trio Hanson were home schooled. Some do it for religious reasons, others because they feel their kids are not being challenged enough, some because of violence, and others because they think they can do a better job.
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  • rational wrote...
    wsualumn
    January 18, 2013 5:44 pm
    AJ already blew apart your anecdotal argument. Look up stats on testing results. Also, look at the students that typically win competitions such as the spelling bees and the like...there is a far higher representation from home schooled kids.
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  • wsualumn wrote...
    rational
    January 19, 2013 10:31 am
    Tell me where I find these testing results.
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  • wsualumn wrote...
    Rational
    January 19, 2013 10:44 am
    Looked up some of your claims. It isn't necessarily so. As long as the program follows a curriculum and is structured, home schooling MAY lead to better test scores. Nothing definitive. The parents that teach, don't have to be certified teachers. Take my neighbors for example, they decided to home school their kids. They reported to the districts person in charge of home schooling, they were given a curriculum to follow. They threw their hands up 3 weeks later and put their kids back in public schools. I am sure that there are the success stories as well. I honestly believe that certain kids aren't cut out for public schooling. The same goes for private schools as well. Some kids need more one on one and don't function well around their peers.
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    rational
    January 18, 2013 7:37 am
    If Home Schooling is superior why don't ALL students that are Home Schooled do better?Do the parents that Home School take these same tests as these teachers that are on the payroll?If not why not? How are parents who teach their children evaluated?
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  • rational wrote...
    messiah101
    January 18, 2013 5:47 pm
    It's not enough for you that home schooled children do better in general...now you want to move the goal posts such that every single homeschooled kid does better than your union teacher filled schools? You're not being rational. You're confused about who is taking the tests...you need to reread the article..the teachers aren't taking tests, the students are, and the teachers don't want to be held accountable for when their students fail the tests.
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  • cigarfan wrote...
    why Garfield teachers boycotted the MAP test
    January 18, 2013 1:56 am
    http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2020158085_jessehagopianopedxml.html
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  • SickofSeattleite wrote...
    it would be nice when the teacher says "we are an avid school"
    January 18, 2013 5:49 am
    if she knew what avid meant instead of saying "Don't ask me because I don't know..." In which my 11 year old raises her hand and says "It means advancement via individual determination" but it actually doesn't mean that...it means advancement via ethnicity and poverty everybody else stays stuck in a over stuffed Spanish speaking classrooms waiting for the children to learn English while my "over privileged" kids get left behind in a sea of unchallengeable boredom where they are only taught how to pass the state mandated tests and given only brown crayons to color a picture of Martin Luther King JR.....
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  • sportsguru wrote...
    SickofSeattle
    January 18, 2013 6:12 am
    That's cold, real cold. Your a cold person. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    Sicko
    January 18, 2013 7:41 am
    But you have an option,put your child in private school.If your childs education was really important to you you would find away to do that. Public schools are for everyone (one size fits all)and because of this cannot give every student the attention they should receive
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  • CH wrote...
    Are teachers who refuse to administer a test good role models for students? -
    January 18, 2013 6:24 am
    tests that are done in[class room] or out of the class room[in the back of a van]? will the real flounder please stand up!
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  • Newton wrote...
    The Schools Yuk.
    January 18, 2013 6:26 am
    The Teachers know that the school system is nothing more then a waste of time. What a mess. Its not about learning that is for sure. If its state ran then its a failure like everything eles they do.
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  • messiah101 wrote...
    Newton
    January 18, 2013 7:47 am
    Actually the state run education systems have been a fantastic success story and its why the USA has been a world leader.Walk the campus's of many State run university's and you will see many students from all over the world attending.Face it there is a huge lobby for private schools that are seeking to bring down the public school system
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