Will that be on the test? (Professional Standards/Teacher Education).

Unless you have been living on a remote tropical island, you have been hearing the phrase "high-stakes testing" frequently. Both federal and state governments are requiring more tests of students of all ages. This is as true for preservice teachers as it is for 4th-graders.

Many states have mandated tests, such as the National Teacher's Examination (NTE) or the Praxis, for all preservice teachers. Some states have constructed their own tests. Future teachers must achieve acceptable scores on these tests to qualify for certification. Even experienced teachers who move into a new state may have to take the state test if they do not already have a score. Some tests focus on foundations of teaching, while others examine content knowledge.

The Idaho legislature has mandated several steps to improve literacy and technology use in the state and to ensure that all children have the best opportunities for learning to read. Future teachers must pass two examinations in order to become certified: a technology test and the Idaho Comprehensive Literacy Assessment (ICLA). The state legislature has mandated the tests in both areas, but clearly specified the content to be included on the literacy assessment. All of the teacher education institutions in the state have members of their literacy faculties working on the committee that has been assigned the construction task. It has taken over three years to produce the first two forms of the test. The committee has successfully reached consensus on questions dealing with philosophical positions and how to address the mandated content. Literacy curricula at the various institutions have had to be modified to reflect the objectives set forth by the state legislature.

The children in Idaho schools from K-3 also take a test called the Idaho Reading Indicator (IRI) as part of the literacy mandate. While the preservice teachers do not take the test themselves, its content has become part of the curriculum in teacher education. Successful teachers will have students who are successful on the IRI, and so preservice teachers are anxious to know as much about the test content and format as they can to shape their instruction more effectively. In many states, teacher educators must provide future teachers with information about the state and national tests that the children will be taking, in addition to the content they believe a beginning teacher needs pedagogically.

The end result of so much testing at all levels is anxiety for students and teachers, who must use valuable instructional time to practice for, and administer, tests with very high stakes. Assessment is a necessary and important part of learning because it can lead to instructional change that benefits students. However, we must question whether student strengths and needs are driving the testing phenomenon, or whether it is the other way around. If is important to know the answer.

--Carol S. Christy, Professional Standards/ Teacher Education Committee