Students aren’t making the grade

Teachers’ in-class marks (formative) and external (summative achievement) test marks should complement, balance, support and keep each other in check.

In the case of early literacy testing by way of the student learning achievement tests in Grade 3, the outcomes are criterion referenced and we want the overwhelming majority (95 per cent) of young students to meet the acceptable benchmark of language by hand (legible printing; spelling accuracy reflecting phonics understanding and sight word knowledge; generating and organizing words on the page to address a broad topic). Sadly, Alberta’s young learners are not measuring up, especially among more advantaged kids, who have lots of excellent ideas and vocabulary, but can’t get them on the page. And, at the other end, too many are not making the acceptable benchmark. This is a reflection of what is (or is not) going on in the classroom. Teacher effects are highly visible.

We surely want the majority of folks who drive cars to have passed a test and be minimally prepared for the job. There are no secrets, tricks or undue pressure to any of this. Most kids are eager and delight in their evolving literacy abilities.

Literacy is the foundation of participation in civil society and our young learners deserve the keys to access that comes from good teaching, and in turn, that is reflected in measured outcomes.

Hetty Roessingh, Calgary Hetty Roessingh is a professor at the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary.