The Trials of Testing

Where to begin?
The subject of standardized testing seems to be unconquerable in a single blog post. So I'm going to try to keep it simple for you.
The elementary school I work at is currently on 'Year One Warning' - which basically means our past test scores have been consistently low enough to draw some negative attention from the state government. They have given us a year to get ourselves back on track, assuming we are able to improve test scores. What happens if we don't meet the minimum requirements? I've been told to not even go there…

At the beginning of the school year, all testing grade levels (3rd, 4th, 5th) met with a test analysis committee, and it was my impression from that meeting that we simply needed 12% progress from the previous year's scores. Not so, exactly. The percent increase only counts for those students who actually pass the test. So it doesn't matter if I've helped bring a child up from a 1st grade reading level to a 2nd grade reading level…it won't count if my lowest student improves his or her score by 30%.
Ultimately, it's not about overall progress, it's about overall passing.

So, my goal is not necessarily to make a 12% gain across the board. My goal is to get 12% more students to pass the state test. In order to ensure the greatest amount of success in this endeavor, we must focus 100% of our intervention efforts on those students who have come to be commonly known as "bubble kids" - students who are below grade level, but who are close enough that they might actually be able to pass if we provide them with focused intervention lessons and keep our fingers crossed.
Hey 'No Child Left Behind' - will you please explain how this methodology is not contradictory? Please, enlighten me on how those children who need our attention the most are not being strategically left behind.

I'm not saying we shouldn't focus on those kids who are close to "getting it". And I fully understand the logic and tactic behind this sort of plan. But I can't pretend that I'm not watching my severely low students miss out on opportunities for success that they need just as badly, if not more.
What is the solution?
(Well, I have an idea…but that's for another post.)

So. 12% more students passing the big test. That's our goal.
Last year, 50% of third grade students scored well enough to pass the reading test.
Let's do some basic math, shall we?
50% + 12% = 62%
We need to make sure at least 62% of our third graders pass the reading test this year.

Deep breath. Here comes the scary part.
As of January, mid-way through the school year…
12% of third graders passed the reading benchmark test.
18% of third graders passed the math benchmark test.

Just to clarify:
We need at least a 62% passing rate.
We currently have a 12% passing rate.
Is this a possible task?
I'm honestly not sure.

...Let's move on to some visuals.

Below are the January benchmark test results for my third grade class:

Reading

Math

While these scores may seem scary (and they are), I was informed that, out of the six third grade classes at my school, my kids were among the top two highest scoring classes. I assure you I am not taking this moment to boast (there's a little too much red on those graphs to warrant much bragging), but in the midst of all the mental discouragement and negativity I fight on a daily basis it does feel good to know that I must be doing at least something right. :)
If third grade overall has a 12% passing rate for reading and I've got 23%; an 18% passing rate for math and I've got 38%, then that is something to be happy about, right? I've got to take what joy I can find!

So, at this point in the game it all boils down to green vs. red.
The small slices of orange on each pie - those are my "bubble kids"; the neutrals upon whom my instructional focus will turn to with full force, in hopes that by April I will win that many more students over to the green side.

It's sad to think in terms of red vs. green. Because with this way of thinking, students are transformed from individuals to statistics, from faces to numbers. I hate it. I know why we have to do it this way. But it feels as though I'm being instructed to neglect those who need me the most. And a very rebellious, passionate side of my brain refuses to give in to such thinking. Every child is important, not just my "bubble kids" who are close to getting it. Knowing that I have somehow helped my students to gain even an ounce of knowledge that they didn't have before - that's what is important. Watching a student read a beginning chapter book on their own for the first time; seeing a child's face light up when they finally understand how to multiply two numbers - those are the moments that I choose to define my level of success, not numbers on a pie chart.
In the end, do the numbers matter? I wish I could say no, but the answer is yes. The numbers determine both our freedom and our funding. But I will remind myself to take heart! Because without heart, I am convinced teaching is just another miserable career.

Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick." In the same way, I must continue to have faith for even the weakest of readers and the unlikeliest of mathematicians. They are the ones who arguably need a good teacher the most.
While striving for that 62% goal I cannot, I will not neglect the red.