Title: Do students take too many tests? Congress to weigh question | PBS NewsHour Weekend
Headings: Do students take too many tests? Congress to weigh question
Do students take too many tests? Congress to weigh question
TESTING IS FEDERALLY MANDATED
NUMBER OF TESTS IS HARD TO KNOW
TESTING IS A POLITICAL ISSUE
NEW COMMON CORE-BASED ASSESSEMENTS ARE COMING
Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press
Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press

Content: Just as the standards have been controversial, so have the assessments – and some states have opted out of them. Educators expect student test scores to drop and cause angst. But proponents say they are a better measure of what students actually know and are better aligned to what they learn in class. About 5.2 million students participated in field tests of the new assessments, with few technology-related snags. But it’s expected that some schools will not have the Internet capability to administer the tests by computer and will need to do so using old-fashioned paper and pencil, according to the Government Accountability Office. TEACHER EVALUATIONS FIGURE IN THE DEBATE
The Obama administration views teacher evaluations with teeth as in important way to improve schools. It has given incentives to states to develop such evaluation systems, including making them a requirement to get a waiver to No Child Left Behind. In 2009, 35 states and the District of Columbia did not require teacher evaluations to include measures of student learning, according to the National Council on Teacher Quality. But by last year, that dropped to nine states. That’s put added pressure on teachers – and at the same time classroom expectations are changing because of Common Core.