So yesterday I sent an email to the STAR Office of the California Department of Education regarding the fact that there are some students that have to retake the same STAR test for Pre-Calculus multiple times.
So Jane Liang, a Mathematics Consultant for the California Department of Education responded in less than 11 hours of my email. I have to admit I was impressed with the timing there. Regardless, she did bring up some interesting points, which do have merit. Here is her reply.
Dear Mihir:
Thank you for writing to us regarding repeating the California Standards Test (CSTs) for Summative High School Mathematics.
I understand you and some of your peers have achieved higher level of mathematics than most of students of your age in the state. By asking you to repeat the same test seems not achieve any goals. However, your test results will be fed in your school and district’s accountability calculation, which meets federal and state’s education law requirements.
The STAR tests are designed to assess schools and districts education program progress, instead of individual student’s learning progress. Therefore, the results of the STAR fed in schools and districts’ API and API calculation only hold schools and districts accountable. They do not hold individual students accountable.
If you have further concerns about this subject, please contact me.
Sincerely Yours,
Jane Liang, Ed.D.
Mathematics Consultant
STAR Program & Assessment Transition Office
California Department of Education
Her reasoning is pretty good, and so I think it’ll drop the matter here; I have a Calculus Test tomorrow and I’m not in the mood to get into an email battle with the STAR Office. However, if any readers wish to email her back, the email is right under her name for you. Good luck!
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