HISD officially endorses end-of-course exams over TAKS
As expected, HISD's board today voted unanimously in favor of a resolution that calls on the state legislature to end TAKS testing, and replace it with end-of-course exams.
Here is a snippet from HISD's press release on the vote:
The HISD school board unanimously approved a resolution Thursday calling for the Legislature to end the high-stakes TAKS test in high school and replace it with comprehensive “end-of-course” exams. Dr. Saavedra said students need a full, well-rounded education, and end-of-course exams could be used to better determine whether children are learning everything they need to learn.
“We urge the Legislature to take action to replace the TAKS with a strong end-of-course test system that will hold schools accountable and better show what children have learned,” Dr. Saavedra said. “A rich and varied curriculum plays a critical role in developing college- and workforce-ready students. End-of-course exams are better able to reaffirm concepts and knowledge learned in the classroom and to focus teacher efforts on subject areas that have the ability to increase student achievement.”
The resolution, in addition to calling for the replacement of TAKS at high school, calls for the Legislature to develop "a state model of accountability at all grade levels that focuses on student improvement and growth".
Earlier this week, HISD drew coverage from local television stations, the Associated Press, and even ABC's World News Tonight for its advocacy of substituting end-of-course exams for TAKS. Strangely, the Houston Chronicle chose not to cover the matter with original reporting until today, when it ran a story on the legislature's debate over the move. HISD's preference to substitute end-of-course exams for TAKS appears 17 paragraphs into the 26-paragraph story, and gets only superficial treatment.
It's not clear why the Chronicle didn't cover this local angle of the controversial TAKS debate more thoroughly. Sometimes, the Chronicle's priorities are just puzzling.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 04/12/07 10:49 PM | Print | Comments (8)
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