-->

Feedback from my daughter about the recent SOL testing leaves me questioning what we are actually measuring.

History SOL for 11th grade. 11th grade covers US History. There were 7 questions on European History. I don't know the exact questions but unless they pertained to US History they may want to be free questions.

AP History had questions on WW2 beyond what the students had covered in class.
14 questions that they may miss.

Standard means a basis for evaluation or measurement.

How can you measure something they don't know or haven't been taught?

Unless this is a Standards for Excellence exam which implies a different meaning. I expect a great deal from the educators to be able to look at the information before they question and see if it is something that they covered or not.

A recent conversation with another student from Illinois that had recently moved to another state.
The subjects they are covering here we covered two months earlier and I am bored out of my gourd. So where are we in the grander scheme of things........are we months behind other states? The best way to find out is to talk to the
students see if they are making a difference.

I will not stand by and watch this system struggle with no direction. This is the third such program that you have started since my daughter started school 17 years ago. Enough is enough. The students are not any better off then where we started. To much time is being spent on systems that have failed and not enough time on the students themselves. Success stories....my daughter is one, despite the ups and downs of the educational system she has turned out to be a leader, even better that she realizes that I will respond to injustices however small that might influence her fellow students.

I just hope that you will take this as constructive criticism and start on next year.... take the focus off the students passing SOL and put it on the teachers to teach. As I look at this report card all the teachers but ....66% should NOT be allowed to teach next year. IF ONLY 33% OF THE STUDENTS UNDERSTOOD WHAT THE TEACHERS TAUGHT.........DOES THAT MEAN IT IS THE STUDENTS' PROBLEM OR THE TEACHERS? I would appreciate a return answer soon.


Thank you,
Traci Lenhart

Dear Traci,
I'm not a parent, or from the school board but I am a student in the same place as your daughter. I'm a girl in the 11th grade and what you are say in is very true. I agree 100% with you. Thank you for your letter.

Traci,
I am also an 11th grade student. I agree with what seems to be your theory but believe that it is not totally the teachers faults either. While they have been given standards that the tests are supposed to be based on, they still haven't been shown how they are expected to teach this so that the students can grasp it in the time required. The SOLs are definitely not Standards of Excellence as they themselves are not excellent but the idea is good and with adjustments can work to improve educations, but only if the people at the upper levels work to help those below.

Traci,

I am a teacher. There are many things that make preparing my students for the SOL tests difficult. Many of my students have not yet learned the SOLs from previous grade levels. I am not comfortable focussing on teaching simile and metaphor (high school English SOLs) to students who do not know how to address an envelope or write a coherant paragraph.

For some students, retention is a problem. I know the English teacher they had last year and she is a BETTER teacher than I am. By the end of their ninth grade year she had them writing paragraphs and identifying verbs and nouns. By the beginning of their tenth grade year, these skills had disappeared.

For other students, learning style is the issue. They do not learn in traditional classrooms. They are hands-on learners and they are behind because hands-on learning is difficult to create in classes of 25 or so.

For some students, family priorities are the issue. One student of mine was absent one day in five, often because his Dad needed him to work. Or parents have had negative school experiences and pass that on to the students.

I've known students who were successful until they had a specific teacher, who convinced them within one year that they were poor students. This attitude remains with them in high school. I realize there are teachers who should not be teaching or need retraining.

For some students, failure is the only thing in their lives that they control.

This year, I watched students bubble incorrect answers for questions to which I am positive they knew the answer. The format of the test, the vocabulary or phrasing of the question threw them. Or they know the information, but they can't regurgitate it on command. The need more context to be able to access it.

It's a complicated situation. I hope it results in better learning experiences for our students. I hope it doesn't just convince those who suspect they are inadequate that there is no point trying.

Traci,
I don't know about any other counties in Va. But Mecklenburg is threatening to take parents to court if they do not send the kids to summer school for the sol's. I hope that this is not a state law for if it is we are in a sad state.

DJH:

The parents should be glad to send their child to summer school if he or she is failing. I also hate to see the law require anyone to do anything they don't want to. On the other hand, I don't like to see citizens fight the system when it doesn't result in any gains for that particular individual.

I wouldn't worry about the case you cited, the courts will work it out. If there is no law violated, then the person won't be convicted. If there is a law on the books that is unjust, we citizens will have to write to our state delagates or senators.

Sincerely,

Loyd Epperly

Dear DJH:

Thank you for your recent inquiry regarding summer school and compulsory school attendance. The 1998 General Assembly amended the Standards of Quality to require that local school boards develop programs of prevention, intervention, or remediation for students who are educationally at-risk (this includes children who fail any or all of the SOL tests). Superintendents are required to assign such students to one of these programs (prevention, intervention, or remediation). The law does not require summer school but makes it an option. Since the Board of Education has not yet developed guidelines for these programs, local school boards have a considerable amount of flexibility in regard to how the required remediation is structured and how students are assigned to those programs.

Since the Standards of Quality are state laws, local school officials must follow the requirements set forth. However, as indicated above, the law does provide options and flexibility in how it is implemented.

Another new provision in state law to accompany the revised standards allows, but does not require, local school officials to seek immediate compliance with compulsory school attendance laws. This could involve court action if this action is taken.

If you have questions or need further information, please contact Charles W. Finley, Director of Accreditation, Department of Education, by telephone at 804-786-9421, or by e-mail to cfinley@pen.k12.va.us

Mr. Epperly:

Thank you for your recent inquiry regarding summer school. The 1998 General Assembly amended the Standards of Quality to require that local school boards develop programs of prevention, intervention, or remediation for students who are educationally at-risk (this includes children who fail any or all of the SOL tests). Superintendents are required to assign such students to one of these programs (prevention, intervention, or remediation). The law does not require summer school but makes it an option. Since the Board of Education has not yet developed guidelines for these programs, local school boards have a considerable amount of flexibility in regard to how the required remediation is structured and how students are assigned to those programs.

Since the Standards of Quality are state laws, local school officials must follow the requirements set forth. However, as indicated above, the law does provide options and flexibility in how it is implemented.

If you have questions or need further information, please contact Charles W. Finley, Director of Accreditation, by telephone at 804-786-9421, or by e-mail to cfinley@pen.k12.va.us

Traci Lenhart:

Thank you for writing about your concerns about SOL tests and instruction in your child's school. I reviewed the standards for grade 11 U. S. History. Several of them, 11.1, 11.3, and 11.7, touch on topics that concern activities in Europe as they relate to the early colonization of our country. Given that these standards are in U. S. History, it is entirely possible that there were questions that touch on these topics. You might want to look on the Department of Education's Web site (www.pen.k12.va.us) under SOL Test Blueprints. This outlines each of the SOL tests. There is a reporting category on the U. S. History test called "History: First Contact to 1789" with 10 questions on the test. Questions like you mentioned would be contained in that reporting category.

You also had a concern about the AP History test including questions that were related to information your child had not covered in class. The AP tests are a product of The College Board and follow the outline of the AP course. I am sure that it is the goal of your child's teacher to teach the material outlined for the AP course before the AP test is given.

You concluded your letter with a question about suburbs and the World History to 1000 AD + World Geography test. This test also contains questions on World Geography that may not necessarily be related to that time frame. Again, the blueprint for the World History to 1000 AD + World Geography is on the Web site.

We appreciate your comments and we hope the information we have provided will be helpful. I am sure your school is working to align their curriculum with the SOLs. Every school in Virginia is moving in that direction. This will ensure that your child and all other children have the opportunity to receive a solid foundation in their public school programs as they prepare to live in the 21st century.

If you have more questions or concerns, please feel free to call me at (804) 225-2102.

Cameron M. Harris
Assistant Superintendent
Division of Assessment and Reporting