Position Paper on the Standards of Learning prepared by 
the Faculty of the Graduate School of Education
George Mason University
November 30, 1999

Introduction

We, the faculty of the Graduate School of Education at George Mason University believe that high and rigorous academic standards are essential to improving Virginia's schools. However, we also believe that the current State-led education reform movement centering on the Standards of Learning (SOLs) actualized through a sole reliance on high-stakes standardized testing is seriously flawed, and that the accreditation system for schools which relies on student performance on these questionable tests should be reconsidered.

Rather than labeling schools as failures and creating an upheaval in local school divisions, the state's policymakers should set aside the current approach to accountability and engage in a more inclusive and public discussion of ways to improve the education of children in Virginia's schools through incentives and assistance. At stake are students and schools that must succeed if Virginia is to maintain the vibrant, intellectual environment for which it has historically been known.

We have many concerns. They range from the setting of the SOL cut-scores to the manner of reporting these scores which provide no diagnostic information that schools, teachers and parents need for helping children learn to the disregard of the wide-ranging socioeconomic differences among local school divisions. We have identified four major issues which we believe, if addressed properly, will create an incentive system in which all schools can improve.

Four Major Issues

In this statement, we present our concerns about the limitations of the State's current accountability system and propose recommendations for improving the SOLs themselves, the SOL assessments, and how the test results are used. We draw your attention to the following four major issues:

(1) Establishing broad consensus on standards that are high but attainable;
(2) Using multiple measures of student and school quality;
(3) Ensuring equality of educational opportunity and equity for diverse learners; and
(4) Ensuring fair use of test results.

Each of these is discussed briefly below including recommendations for improvement.

Issue #1: Establishing broad consensus on standards that are high but attainable

National studies indicate that sound curriculum standards are based on multiple perspectives about student achievement that go beyond superficial disciplinary skills and information, that foster knowledge and skills related to productive 21st century work and citizenship, and which enjoy widespread public understanding and support (French, 1998). We believe Virginia's current Standards of Learning over-emphasize low-level factual information, defining knowledge as inert rather than as a quest of disciplined discovery. Specifically, Virginia's SOLs do not include sufficient emphasis on using facts to reason and solve problems in collaboration with other learners as is recommended by multiple industry-led, blue-ribbon commissions (Commission on the Skills of the American Workforce, 1990; Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills, 1991; U.S. Congress, 1995). Also, Virginia's SOLs tend to replicate and reinforce the shallow "recall and recipe" approaches to teaching which have already been shown to be inadequate for improving U.S. students' performance on the Third International Math and Science Study (National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council, 1997).

Recommendation: The State Board of Education should establish a review task force representing a broad spectrum of viewpoints including leading subject matter specialists, practicing educators, business leaders, teacher educators, parents, and representatives of higher education to review the Virginia Standards of Learning. This task force can be charged with providing realistic information on the essential knowledge and skills needed to prepare school-age children to become thoughtful, responsible, and productive citizens of Virginia in the 21st century. This task force also should be charged with drafting 'next generation' standards and assessments that center on preparation of students for the new millennium. These standards should include a core of both content (facts and concepts) standards and performance (level of mastery) standards that are appropriate for children's stages of development and varying levels of ability. The task force can develop the new content standards drawing upon the experience of other states and upon national studies about the standards- setting process. The task force should also be assigned responsibility for recommending short- and long-range revisions and upgrading of the current system to the Board of Education before the 2000- 2001 school year, including the levels of funding needed in FY2002 and beyond to implement a fair and effective system of accountability.

Issue #2: Using multiple measures of quality

It makes little sense, on the basis of a single test, to depict as failures those students, teachers, and schools who by other objective measures of quality are clearly successful. Using one measure to determine how well a student or school is performing is akin to accepting one's pulse count or blood pressure as a measure for overall health. It is simply inadequate, and a burden no single measure can carry.

Recommendation: The State Board of Education should develop a more refined and complete definition of student achievement as well as new procedures for determining educational quality, using a broad spectrum of measures based on widely accepted strategies for validation. In our view, judgments of student performance for establishing school accountability should also include: student motivation to learn, as indicated by attendance and retention rates and participation in voluntary learning activities; mastery of advanced topics (in core areas of the curriculum, attainment of knowledge and skills well above grade-level and standardized test norms); and fluency in sophisticated workplace skills (such as the use of information technology for complex types of data analysis, interpretation, problem-solving, collaboration, and communication).

These three learning outcomes require assessments that measure student performance which go beyond that called for on the current SOL tests.

Issue #3: Ensuring Equality of Educational Opportunity & Equity for Diverse Learners

We were heartened by the actions of the State Board of Education when it allowed over five years of schooling before the test scores of ESL students would be counted into the school's report card. With Virginia experiencing rapid increases in the numbers of language minority and at-risk students enrolling in schools throughout the state, the issue of ensuring equity in achieving the standards will remain an issue that demands constant attention.

However, a critical measure of the success of state-level education reforms is equitable achievement outcomes for all children, including ESL students and students with exceptional needs. The goal of all children achieving high and rigorous standards cannot be accomplished through the use of accountability approaches that fail to take these considerations into account.

Recommendation. We ask the State Board of Education to empanel a "citizen's watch-group" tomonitor the performance of ESL students and students with exceptional needs on the SOL exams. This group will make recommendations for adjustments about how these populations are being prepared to reach the standards.

Issue #4: Ensuring fair use of test results

By setting the passing scores at the high end of the range, the Board of Education has ensured substantial numbers of students and schools will never meet the standards. Virginia's present plan for use of the SOL tests as the sole criterion for earning a high school diploma and accrediting schools is a high-stakes decision we believe will affect children, families, teachers, and schools in the following negative ways:

Denial of High School Diploma - Research has revealed that holding all students to the same standards results in unacceptably high retention and failure rates (Linn, 1998). Legal challenges against the Commonwealth, as are being threatened in Massachusetts, and local school divisions will follow the denial of high school diplomas to substantial numbers of children. The human potential and productivity lost because of an increase in school dropouts resulting from denial of a high school diploma will also have serious social and economic ramifications.

Denial of School Accreditation - Experience across the country has provided no compelling evidence to support the benefits of state takeovers of schools and districts based on low test scores. Instead, the State needs to allocate adequate financial resources so that each school can provide the programs needed to promote student learning.

Negative Performance Evaluations of Teachers and Denial of Pay- The evaluation of teachers is an important feature of any accountability system. However, teachers, like their students, should be evaluated using multiple measures. Teaching disadvantaged children is far more challenging than teaching children who are highly motivated and the beneficiaries of early years of educational opportunities in their homes and preschools. These contexts must be considered in any system of
sanctions and rewards.

Recommendation: We ask that the State Board of Education immediately reconsider the following policies: (1) setting passing test scores for all students which are significantly higher than those recommended by their own validation committees; (2)denial of a high school diploma on the basis of a single measure; (3) denial of accreditation to schools whose scores are below levels set for all school divisions by the Board of Education; and (4) the potential use of teacher performance evaluations and pay increases tied to their students' SOL test results, until a better assessment and accountability system is in place.

Our Commitment

The Virginia Board of Education has attempted to develop and implement a standards-based accountability system through high-stakes, standardized testing. This system cannot succeed without the allocation of sufficient time and resources for reaching broad consensus on core standards for all students, for test development and validation, for alignment of curriculum and instructional materials, and for initial and continuing teacher professional development. We believe the Board is on the right path, but that the system needed to make it work is not yet in place. The faculty members of the Graduate School of Education at George Mason University are aware that the Board of Education has recently taken steps to address some of the concerns presented above. However, we believe other actions are needed and want to add our voices to those of the general public, including the Parents Across Virginia, the Fairfax County Council of Parent- Teacher Associations, and others who demand a broader perspective of learning than the one currently represented by the assessments associated with the Standards of Learning in Virginia. Toward resolving these issues, we offer the expertise found on our faculty to the State Board of Education to assist in developing and implementing a system of education and accountability that truly increases thelikelihood all children will participate fully in the 21st century economy and society of Virginia.

References

Commission of the Skills of the American Workforce. (1990). America's choice: High skills or low wages. Rochester, NY: National Center on Education and the Economy.

French, D. (1998). The state's role in shaping a progressive vision of public education. Phi Delta Kappan, 80 (3): 185-194.

Linn, R. L. (1999). Standards-based accountability: Ten suggestions. CRESST Policy Brief. Los Angeles, CA: National Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Student Testing.

Linn, R. L. & Baker, E. A. (1998). School quality: Some missing pieces. CRESST Line, pp. 1-3, 8.

National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council. (1997). Learning from TIMSS: An NRC Symposium on the Results of the Third International Math and Science Study. Washington, DC: NRC.

Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills. (1991). What work requires of schools. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor.

U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment. (1995). Learning to work: Making the transition from school to work (OTA-EHR-637). Washington, DC: USGPO.