Texas Public School System - Essay Example

?HI, my precious I have edited the essay to meet the requirements of your teacher. From what I read in your teacher’s comment, he wanted you to [explain the characteristic features of evaluation types, and explain the potential pitfalls/benefit of each evaluation type]. This is exactly what I have done. I have added more components of the TAKS assessment and discussed their benefits. I also talked about TAA, a type of assessment that used to be in place in 1997 and why it was abolished (its pitfall). I have also added an introductory paragraph to the first sub-heading to make it introduce the whole essay. After the final work, you will find the areas in your work I edited. The ideas I added are typed in RED to make you spot the new additions. I have also attached one more article that I used. If your teacher requests for it, you may provide it to him. Thank you and hoping we work again in the nearest future since my field is Education. Isaac #72032 TUI UNIVERSITY Grear Dale III MAE 515 MOD 3 SLP Dr. Xiaoying Wu February 21, 2011 Texas Public School System Education is an important aspect of society. In the view of Goer (2007), education has an enormous impact on the human society. It trains the human mind to think and take the right decision. To this effect, human is regarded as a rational being and distinguished from other animals when he is educated to take control of himself and over the environment around him. Education therefore equips humankind with the knowledge to take charge over his immediate environment and make it suitable for his existence. It is for the reason of this immense impact of education that States all over the world adapt educational systems that will be most suitable to the needs of its citizens and help solve the immediate problems of its people. To ensure that the adapted educational system meets the expectation of society, there are systems put in place to check for success and progress of the entire educational system. Checking for success of the educational system includes checking whether the curriculum answers the most immediate perturbing issues of society and whether stakeholders in the educational system; including students and teachers are living up to the standards of the educational system. The system that is used for checking whether the educational system is up to standard is commonly referred to as assessment. In the State of Texas, the public school system is one of the most esteemed forms of education. Texas’ public school system continues to use a variety of assessments in which to evaluate curriculum and teachers/instructors. Assessments are conducted by students in determining where their school ranks within districts throughout the state. The rankings are not always used in a positive manner. Some assessments are in an attempt to solicit student enrollment into certain school districts. The State of Texas’ overall intent for its ranking procedure and policies is also used to promote schools as Magnet schools, which is a positive step to improve student outcomes. Magnet schools throughout the state of Texas receive much more funding regular schools. It focuses on special funding for special programs and compensation to teachers/instructors who deliver their curriculum to a certain standard. It is noticeable that the typical standard school receives far less funding and therefore students are less likely to receive the same standard of education. The intent of this analysis is to compare certification programs and evaluation requirements for teachers as well as students within the state of Texas school districts. What is a Magnet School? The article “Public School Review,” suggest that the difference between a Magnet and regular public schools “is that they usually have something special to offer over a regular school, which makes attending Magnet schools an attractive choice to many students, thereby increasing the diversity of the student population within them.” (Chen, 2007) Students who are privileged to enroll in Magnet schools typically will have higher grade point averages than regular public schools and majority will have some of the same interest of curriculum that focuses on higher learning education. However, before any student is allowed to enroll in these Magnet schools they must first obtain a certain grade point average in a focused area of academic excellence. Teacher Assessment Texas Assessment and Certification: Assessment in Texas Public Schools does not only focus on students. As a matter of fact, much premium is placed on teacher assessment as it is placed on student assessment. In the state of Texas, teachers are given a state certification examination, which they are required to pass before teaching/instructing. This is mandated by law for teachers whether they are going into a Magnet or regular school. Teachers are certified in the area of their profession. This law does not prevent all teachers from teaching; new teachers are given a two year grace period to get certified. Within the two year grace period teachers must enroll in an approved certification program that will prepared them to eventually take the examination. Teachers are not allowed to teach if they fail to pass the state certification examination, which is required before permanent employment. The Texas State Board of Certified Educators has certain rules that govern teacher’s requirements to teach. Teachers are not allowed to teach with only an education degree. They must have achieved an academic major in a specific field to include teacher training courses within the district. There are no exemptions to these requirements, except in the areas of career and technology certification, which will afford teachers the opportunity to teach in certain courses, welding or computer-aiding drafting to name a few. Student verses Teacher Evaluation Evaluation Types: An assessment test is required by law for all students in the state of Texas, regardless of school rankings or location. The Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skill Test (TAKS) is the assessment test that students must take and pass before receiving their diplomas. Before the TAKS assessment format was introduced, there was the TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skill). However the TAAS had a great pitfall when “according to state and district records, approximately twenty percent of minority students failed to meet the TAAS standards; compared to only ten percent of white students.” The shortfall of this assessment type was therefore on racial issues. Therefore in 1999 a new statewide testing program was introduced, which was the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and implemented in spring 2003. One of the greatest benefits of TAKS is that it “includes an accommodated form called TAKS (Accommodated) for students served by special education who meet the eligibility requirements for certain specific accommodations” (Texas Education Agency, TEA 2008). What is more, the assessment does not contain any embedded field-test items. It is important to note that the Texas Education Agency, who are the assessment agency for Texas Public Schools have a number of assessment tests even under the TAKS and each of these assessment types comes with their own pitfalls and benefits. For instance there is the TAKS-Modified, which is issued to students with special education services. There is also the TAKS-Alternate, which is prepared for students who have significant cognitive disabilities but meet the participation requirements. These two components of the assessment are very important because education is not to discriminate on the grounds of disability and it is also supposed to meet the diverse needs of all students. The Texas Education Agency (2008) notes that these assessments are different from the traditional form of assessment in the sense that “the assessment involves teachers observing students as they complete teacher-designed activities that link to the grade-level TEKS curriculum.” The Texas State also has the Linguistically Accommodated Testing (LAT). This assessment is designed for LEP-exempt recent immigrants. The essence of this assessment is that it helps students to overcome language barriers even as it ensures that these students are given useful assessment of academic knowledge and skills. These students progress to take the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS), which assesses their progress with English proficiency. Finally, there are the End-of-Course Assessments. These assessments test students in a variety of learning areas including Algebra II, geometry, biology, chemistry, physics, English world geography, world history, and United States history. According to the Texas Education Agency (2008), “The purpose of the new EOC assessments is to measure students’ academic performance in core high school courses.” It must be emphasized that as much as The (TAKS) assesses or evaluate students, it is also used in assessing teachers/instructors ability to teach at a certain level of proficiency to include assessing curriculum effectiveness based on student learning outcomes. In the state of Texas teachers are required to execute and provide a development plan that will reinforces the state’s objectives and goals. The Article, “Passing the Torch: Performance Assessment Benchmarks for Preserving Teachers and Mentor Teacher Training”, “a strong teaching profession requires highly qualified teachers who are prepared for the rigors nature of the classroom and who continue their professional development through the support of mentorship” (Morgan, 1999). The logic is that, a teacher who performs well will have a lot of his teachers passing the TAKS. Conclusion Magnet and public school programs have the same requirements and are similar in many ways than must care to believe. According to extensive research, the only noticeable separation of the two school programs is the enrollment requirements for students. Student’s performance is the number one factor in determining enrollment eligibility within the two educational programs. Teachers must meet certain requirements no matter the educational program before they are allowed to teach, which is positive in the education system. Teachers must pass the state certification examination before they’re allowed to teach. This requirement is important for teachers and students and it must be enforced in order to maintain the best learning environment for all students, Magnet or not. References Bobbette M. Morgan, (Vol. 1999) Passing the Torch: Performance Assessment Benchmarks for Preservice Teachers and Mentor Teacher Training http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=LQ2DnHdhnt75L9Lw Dr. William Allan Kritsonis W.A (2007). Student Assessment, Public School Law, Educational Laws and Policies. Retrieved on March 3 2011 from http://www.epm2009.org/public-school/student-assessment-public-school-law-educational-laws-and-policies-dr-william-allan-kritsonis/index.html. Glen Chen, (Dec 2007). Public School Review, What is a Magnet School http://www.publicschoolreview.com/articles/2 Goer M. 2007. The Importance of Education. Search Warp. Accessed 17 Febraury 2011 http://searchwarp.com/swa230219.htm Texas Education Agency, TEA (2008). Assessment and Testing. Accessed March 3 2011 from http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/assessment.html Texas State Board of Education (SBEC) http://www.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECOnline/certinfo/becometeacher.asp Editing Process Texas Public School System Education is an important as aspect of society. In the view of Goer (2007), education has an enormous impact on the human society. It trains the human mind to think and take the right decision. To this effect, human is regarded as a rational being and distinguished from other animals when he is educated to take control of himself and over the environment around him. Education therefore equips humankind with the knowledge to take charge over his immediate environment and make it suitable for his existence. It is for the reason of this immense impact of education that States all over the world adapt educational systems that will be most suitable to the needs of its citizens and help solve the immediate problems of its people. To ensure that the adapted educational system meets the expectation of society, there are systems put in place to check for success and progress of the entire educational system. Checking for success of the educational system includes checking whether the curriculum answers the most immediate perturbing issues of society and whether stakeholders in the educational system; including students and teachers are living up to the standards of the educational system. The system that is used for checking whether the educational system is up to standard is commonly referred to as assessment. In the State of Texas, the public school system is one of the most esteemed forms of education. Texas’ public school system continues to use a variety of assessments in which to evaluate curriculum and as well as teachers/instructors. Assessments are conducted by students in determining where their school ranks within districts throughout the state. The rankings are not always used in a positive manner. , some assessments are in an attempt to solicit student enrollment into certain school districts. The State of Texas’ overall intent for its ranking procedure and policies is also used to promote schools as Magnet schools, which is a are positive step s to improve student outcomes. Magnet schools throughout the state of Texas receive much more funding than your so called regular schools. It focuses on special funding for special programs and compensation to teachers/instructors who that are deliver ing their curriculum to a certain standard. It is noticeable that the your typical standard school receive far less funding and therefore students are less likely to receive the same standard of education. The intent of this analysis is to compare certification programs and evaluation requirements for teachers as well as students within the state of Texas school districts. What is a Magnet School Magnet School: The article “Public School Review,” suggest that the difference between a Magnet and regular public schools “is that they usually have something special to offer over a regular school, which makes attending Magnet schools an attractive choice to many students, thereby increasing the diversity of the student population within them.” (Chen, 2007) Students who are privileged to enroll in Magnet schools typically will have higher grade point averages than your regular public schools and majority will have some of the same interest of curriculum that focuses on higher learning education. However, before any student is allowed to enroll in these this Magnet schools they must first obtain a certain grade point average in a focused area of academic excellence. Teacher Assessment Texas Assessment and Certification: Assessment in Texas Public Schools does not only focus on students. As a matter of fact, mych premium is placed on teacher assessment as it is placed on student assessment. Also In the state of Texas, teachers are given a state certification examination, which they are required to pass before teaching/instructing. This is mandated by law for teachers whether they are going into a Magnet or regular school. that Teachers are certified in the area of their profession. This law does not prevent all teachers from teaching; new teachers are given a two year grace period to get certified. Within the two year grace period teachers must enroll in an approved certification program that will prepared them to eventually take the examination. Teachers are not allowed to teach if they fail to pass the state certification examination, which is required before permanent employment. The Texas State Board of Certified Educators has certain rules that govern teacher’s requirements to teach. Teacher are not allowed to teach with only an education degree only, . They must have achieved an academic major in a specific field to include teacher training courses within the district. There are no exemptions to these requirements, except in the areas of career and technology certification, which will afford teachers the opportunity to teach in certain courses, welding or computer-aiding drafting to name a few. Student verses Teacher Evaluation Evaluation Types: An assessment test is required by law for all students in the state of Texas, regardless of school rankings or location. The Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skill Test (TAKS) is the assessment test that students must take and pass before receiving their diplomas. Before the TAKS assessment format was introduced, there was the TAAS (Texas Assessment of Academic Skill). However the TAAS had a great pitfall when “according to state and district records, approximately twenty percent of minority students failed to meet the TAAS standards; compared to only ten percent of white students.” The shortfall of this assessment type was therefore on racial issues. Therefore in 1999 a new statewide testing program was introduced, which was the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) and implemented in spring 2003. One of the greatest benefits of TAKS is that it “includes an accommodated form called TAKS (Accommodated) for students served by special education who meet the eligibility requirements for certain specific accommodations” (Texas Education Agency, TEA 2008). What is more, the assessment does not contain any embedded field-test items. It is important to not that Texas Education Agency, who are the assessment agency for Texas Public Schools have a number of assessment tests even under the TAKS and each of these assessment types comes with their own pitfalls and benefits. For instance there is the TAKS-Modified, which is issued to students with special education services. There is also the TAKS-Alternate, which is prepared for students who have significant cognitive disabilities but meet the participation requirements. These two components of the assessment are very important because education is not to discriminate on the grounds of disability and it is also supposed to meet the diverse needs of all students. The Texas Education Agency (2008) notes that these assessments are different from the traditional form of assessment in the sense that “the assessment involves teachers observing students as they complete teacher-designed activities that link to the grade-level TEKS curriculum.” The Texas State also has the Linguistically Accommodated Testing (LAT). This assessment is designed for LEP-exempt recent immigrants. The essence of this assessment is that it helps students to overcome language barriers even as it ensures that these students are given useful assessment of academic knowledge and skills. These students progress to take the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS), which assesses their progress with English proficiency. Finally, there are the End-of-Course Assessments. These assessments test students in a variety of learning areas including Algebra II, geometry, biology, chemistry, physics, English world geography, world history, and United States history. According to the Texas Education Agency (2008), “The purpose of the new EOC assessments is to measure students’ academic performance in core high school courses.” It must be emphasized that as much as The (TAKS) assesses or evaluate students, it is also is an evaluation that plays a vital role within the Texas educational system. This evaluation is used in assessing teachers/instructors ability to teach at a certain level of proficiency to include assessing curriculum effectiveness based on student learning outcomes. In the state of Texas teachers are required to execute and provide a development plan that will reinforces the state’s objectives and goals. The Article, “Passing the Torch: Performance Assessment Benchmarks for Preserving Teachers and Mentor Teacher Training”,” “a strong teaching profession requires highly qualified teachers who are prepared for the rigors nature of the classroom and who continue their professional development through the support of mentorship” (Morgan, 1999). The logic is that, a teacher who performs well will have a lot of his teachers passing the TAKS. Conclusion Magnet and public school programs have the same requirements and are similar in many ways than must care to believe. According to extensive research, the only noticeable separation of the two school programs is the enrollment requirements for students. Student’s performance is the number one factor in determining enrollment eligibility within the two educational programs. Teachers must meet certain requirements no matter the educational program before they are allowed to teach, which is a positive in the education system. Teachers must pass the state certification examination before they’re allowed to teach. This requirement is important for teachers and students, and it must be enforced in order to maintain the best learning environment for all students, Magnet or not. Dr. William Allan Kritsonis W.A (2007). Student Assessment, Public School Law, Educational Laws and Policies. Retrieved on March 3 2011 from http://www.epm2009.org/public-school/student-assessment-public-school-law-educational-laws-and-policies-dr-william-allan-kritsonis/index.html. Texas Education Agency, TEA (2008). Assessment and Testing. Accessed March 3 2011 from http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/assessment.html References Glen Chen, (Dec 2007). Public School Review, What is a Magnet School http://www.publicschoolreview.com/articles/2 Texas State Board of Education (SBEC) http://www.sbec.state.tx.us/SBECOnline/certinfo/becometeacher.asp Bobbette M. Morgan, (Vol. 1999) Passing the Torch: Performance Assessment Benchmarks for Preservice Teachers and Mentor Teacher Training http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=LQ2DnHdhnt75L9Lw Goer M. 2007. The Importance of Education. Search Warp. Accessed 17 Febraury 2011 http://searchwarp.com/swa230219.htm Appendix Article Used Assessment/Testing Texas Education Agency http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/assessment.html Division of Accountability Research The Division of Accountability Research publishes annual reports on secondary school completion and dropouts, grade-level retention, college entrance examinations (SAT and ACT), and Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate examinations, and a biennial report on enrollment trends. The division also publishes the Comprehensive Annual Report to the legislature on Texas public schools. In addition, the division is responsible for governance of data submissions to the Texas Education Agency. Performance Reporting Division Performance Reporting is responsible for determining district and school accountability ratings as well as Gold Performance Acknowledgments. These are based largely on student performance on different tests. Performance Reporting also produces the Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS) reports, Snapshot, Pocket Edition, and the School Report Card. Research and Evaluation Division (now Division of Accountability Research) Student Assessment Division The Student Assessment Division manages and oversees the development, administration, scoring and analysis of the statewide assessment program. The statewide assessment program includes the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), including TAKS (Accommodated), TAKS-Modified (TAKS-M), TAKS-Alternate (TAKS-Alt), the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS), and the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS). Tests Administered by TEA Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) In 1999 the 76th Session of the Texas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 103, mandating implementation of a new statewide testing program. The new testing requirements, subsequently named the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), were implemented in spring 2003. TAKS includes an accommodated form called TAKS (Accommodated) for students served by special education who meet the eligibility requirements for certain specific accommodations. The TAKS (Accommodated) form includes format accommodations and contains no embedded field-test items. TAKS and TAKS (Accommodated) are available in Spanish. TAKS-Modified (TAKS-M) TAKS-M is an alternate assessment based on modified academic achievement standards and is designed for students receiving special education services who meet participation requirements for TAKS-M and for whom TAKS is not appropriate. TAKS-M covers the same grade-level content as TAKS, but the assessment itself has been simplified through modifications in format and test design. TAKS-Alternate (TAKS-Alt) TAKS-Alt is an alternate assessment based on alternate academic achievement standards and is designed for students with significant cognitive disabilities who meet the participation requirements. Unlike other statewide assessments in Texas, TAKS-Alt is not a traditional paper or multiple-choice test. Instead, the assessment involves teachers observing students as they complete teacher-designed activities that link to the grade-level TEKS curriculum. Teachers then score student performance using the TAKS-alt rubric and submit results and evidence through an online instrument. Linguistically Accommodated Testing (LAT) LAT is a special administration of TAKS for LEP-exempt recent immigrants. Linguistic accommodations are made in order to assist students in overcoming language barriers and to provide a meaningful assessment of academic knowledge and skills. The Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS) TELPAS is designed to assess the progress that limited English proficient (LEP) students make in learning the English language. End-of-Course Assessments Senate Bill (SB) 1031 mandates the development of end-of course (EOC) assessments for secondary-level courses in Algebra I, Algebra II, geometry, biology, chemistry, physics, English I, English II, English III, world geography, world history, and United States history. The purpose of the new EOC assessments is to measure students’ academic performance in core high school courses and to become part of the graduation requirements starting with the freshman class of 2011-2012. The EOC assessments for lower-level courses will include questions that determine readiness for advanced coursework. The assessments for higher-level courses will include a separate series of special purpose questions that measure college readiness and the need for developmental coursework in higher education. In addition, the score a student achieves on each EOC assessment will be worth 15% of the student’s final grade for that course. Tests NOT Administered by TEA Advanced Placement Program The Advanced Placement Program® is a cooperative educational endeavor between secondary schools and colleges and universities. It provides motivated high school students with the opportunity to take college-level courses in a high school setting. Students who participate in the Program not only gain college-level skills, but in many cases they also earn college credit while they are still in high school. Typically, courses and examinations are taken by 11th and 12th grade students. ACT Assessment® The ACT Assessment® is designed by ACT, Inc. (http://www.act.org) to assess high school students' general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work. Participation is voluntary. The test is generally administered six times a year. Students can choose to take the test multiple times. The examination covers four academic skill areas: English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science Reasoning. The scores for each section range from 1 to 36. Participation in and performance on the ACT are indicators in the Texas public school Academic Excellence Indicator System. Examination for the Certification of Educators in Texas (ExCET) General Educational Development (GED) General Educational Development's mission is to build a capacity for consistent testing services throughout the state in order that all eligible candidates may have an opportunity to earn high school equivalency credentials based on the General Educational Development (GED) Tests. International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate Organization's Diploma Program was created in 1968 and provides a demanding pre-university course of study that leads to examinations that are recognized in over 100 countries around the world. It is designed for highly motivated secondary school students in their junior/senior years. Schools wishing to offer IB courses must go through an application process and be approved by IBO. SAT® The SAT® is developed by the College Board (http://www.collegeboard.com) to assess high school students' readiness for college-level work. Participation is voluntary. The examination is generally administered seven times a year. Students can choose to take the test multiple times. The SAT I: Reasoning Test consists of three sections: Critical Reading, Writing and Mathematics. The scores for each section range from 200 to 800. Participation in and performance on the SAT are indicators in the Texas public school Academic Excellence Indicator System. Texas Examination of Current Administrators & Teachers(TECAT) Contact TEA Web Administration with questions about this page. This page last updated October 14, 2008 Read More