Schools have been measured in this state by the Wisconsin Knowledge Concepts Examination (WKCE). The test clearly has problems.
It is given in the fall so the test is more a measure of how well students learned the previous year than they did in their present classes. Nor can the test result be used to drive instruction since schools don’t get the test results until spring. Nor can the test be used to measure how well students are doing in Wisconsin versus students in other states since we are the only one giving the exam. Nor can anyone justify the standards by which students are judged “proficient” or not. All we know is that the standards set are fairly low.
Needless to say, a lot of educators want to junk the test. But what will be its replacement? Wisconsin’s Department of Instruction isn’t saying exactly, but reading the tea leaves may not be all that difficult.
In its petition for a waiver from the mandates under No Child Left Behind, DPI’s new assessments will be aligned with the Common Core State Standards which most states are adopting. That may mean a common assessment may be used by a number of states. And we already have common assessment – the ACT college entrance exam (usually taken in grade 11) along with the EXPLORE (taken in grade 8) and PLAN (taken in grade 10). Over a half dozen states now require the ACT for graduation. In Wisconsin only 68% take the test.
Wisconsin’s DPI may be telegraphing that they intend to move in the ACT direction because it will ask the state legislature to fund the ACT, EXPLORE, and PLAN for all schools state-wide. Ultimately Wisconsin could join other states in requiring the ACT for graduation, perhaps adding its own enhancements to the ACT test as do these other states. Look for the ACT to further align its assessments with the Common Core State Standards.
One of the first things I pushed for, when I first got on the Milwaukee School Board four years ago was having all our high school graduates take the ACT. That requirement is now a reality for MPS students..
Data from other states that require the ACT for graduation shows an increased number of students who go to college, stay in college, and graduate. We expect to see the same thing coming from MPS graduates in the next few years.
But there is some possible mischief on the horizon as some Wisconsin legislators call for the creation of a vocational diploma as an alternative for the regular diploma. Don’t get me wrong; a vocational diploma could be a really good idea. No one says that every child should go to college. But increasingly the skill set necessary for students to function well in a technical education is virtually the same as the skill set necessary for college. We don’t want students who get the vocational diploma to find the college door closed to them later on should they change their minds about attending college. So the vocational diploma must still be high level, and I would hope that taking the ACT would be part of the vocational diploma requirement.
Otherwise we will be back to the old days of sorting students into two categories: those who can do the academic work and those who we feel can not. And if you are a poor or minority student, chances are you are going to be placed in that second category. And that second category will be a second class education.
