STAR testing to be replaced by Common Core-compatible testing system

Standardized tests that students have taken for years are about to change next spring: California Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) tests and the API scores that accompany it are being eliminated in favor of a new system based on Common Core Standards. 

Despite the absence of STAR tests in the spring, there will be testing in some subjects, though it’s not clear what form they will take. Seniors, who have had two days off for STAR testing in the past, will have to go to school on those days, according to principal Paul Robinson. 

According to recent news reports, Assembly Bill 484 mandates the replacing of the usual pencil-and-paper testing with math and language tests that will be taken on computers starting as early as this spring. Focused more on critical thinking, reasoning and problem-solving, these tests will adjust questions based on whether previous answers were correct or incorrect, providing a more consistent measure on which subjects are better understood. 

In accordance with these changes, grades three through eight and 11 will be given either a math or language test this spring, but not both. Grades five, eight and 10 will be given a science portion that will be dropped after this year. This applies for this year only but is subject to change as the system is better adjusted to the Common Core Standards.

Because the tests have not been fully developed, students' scores won't be accessible to by parents for at least the first year, and schools' performance on the tests won't be accessible to the public for at least the first year; this information will only be visible to school administrators. 

When the bill was under debate back in August, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan argued that cutting the standardized tests would limit the ability to determine school performances through year-to-year test score comparisons.

Named “Smarter Balance,” the new standardized test is designed to “help prepare all students to graduate high school, college and [be] career ready,” according to its website. The new test will not be as extensive as previous STAR tests, but the State Board of Education is not completely clear on what exactly students will face on testing days. 

Nevertheless, STAR is not the only determinant in school rankings being eliminated. Academic Performance Index (API) scores for schools may also cease to exist, but no decision on this matter has been finalized.  

According to Robinson, the possibility of no API score and a smaller scaled version of STAR testing is a big step within a year. 

“Every school district wants to be able to exhale a bit and take a deep breath,” Robinson said. “We want to be able to get ready for whatever new is coming this school year since these are pretty drastic changes.”