Don't judge teachers by students' tests

Regarding "Don't let testing tyrannize teachers" [Opinion, May 17], how short memories are! It wasn't too long ago that mathematical models were employed to ensure that the financial markets would flow smoothly. We all witnessed what happened when sterile formulae were utilized in a naive belief that these would override human foibles.

Sadly, the so-called accountability experts are working overtime to plug in mathematical models that would create a teacher evaluation system to enhance student achievement. This with a complete lack of understanding, as Regent Roger Tilles points out, of the complexities involved in student learning.

Jerome M. Langenthal, Hauppauge
 

Roger Tilles raises may valid points regarding high-stakes testing and teacher evaluations. Clearly, we have a long way to go in developing state tests to truly measure students' ability to think critically and comprehend subject matter.

However, he poses a troublesome observation when he states, "Districts will have to figure out how to offer professional development for teachers deemed ineffective." Are districts hiring teachers who know their content matter or simply employing them because they are good disciplinarians and can coach teams or run clubs?

Far too rarely during the interview process are prospective teachers questioned about the depth and knowledge of the subject(s) they are being asked to instruct.

Charles F. Howlett, West Islip

Editor's note: The writer is an associate professor in the education division at Molloy College.
 

I applaud Regent Tilles' decision not to support the latest misguided plan to assess teachers and principals based on a heavy weighting of students' test scores, and I decry this plan. As a teacher educator with more than 40 years of experience, I am strongly opposed to making golden idols out of standardized achievement tests.

Assessment has a valid role in education, but many of these tests are used for purposes far different from what was intended and often are poor indicators of what students truly learn and are able to do. Spend some time in any teacher's classroom and you can easily determine teacher effectiveness.

Examine the diversity of today's challenging classrooms: many second-language learners, many with special education needs, many with unstable home lives and many raised in poverty. Reduce resources and increase class size and you have a formula for failure! Then look at the reality of teachers' jobs: They're expected to undo the problems that society has created.

Assessment of teachers is important, and those who do not make diligent efforts to educate should be eliminated from the system early on. I've educated thousands of teachers, and rarely do I encounter someone who just doesn't work hard. Using test scores as a barometer of teacher effectiveness is misguided and does damage to all.

Judith H. Cohen, Garden City

Editor's note: The writer is a professor in the School of Education at Adelphi University.
 

We need more Regents like Roger Tilles, who truly understands that 40 percent of a teacher's evaluation should not be based on student test scores. In the New York City school system, where I worked for 34 years, the last 11 as a principal, students often were admitted to our school just weeks (and sometimes days) before state exams. How do you judge a teacher on that child's growth?

As Tilles points out, the reasons for low test scores are numerous, and to that list you can add student mobility. If the impact of the teacher were the only factor that determined how students perform on exams, test scores would be much higher than they are because there are many more really good teachers than there are bad ones. And yes, we do need to get rid of the bad ones.

Tilles also makes a valid point about how important subjects like science, social studies and the arts have been pushed to the back burner in order to prepare students for exams. The Regents' decision to eliminate exams in foreign languages is penny wise and pound foolish.

Marc Davis, Plainview
 

I agree with Regent Roger Tilles regarding evaluating teachers and competing in the global market. Evaluating teachers is an important component of good teaching. In recent decades, state standardized tests masked as "diagnostic assessments," which are meant to diagnose low-performing students, have actually taken teachers hostage.

Assessments are necessary, but using a norm-referenced test (measuring and comparing who knows the most and the least) rather than using a criterion-referenced test (measuring how well a person knows a specific body of knowledge and skill) is a punishment of teachers and students. It overlooks the goal of helping low-performing students.

Joseph Coladonato, Long Beach

Editor's note: The writer is a teacher in East Williston.