Oregon's standardized testing scores in 2017 continued to fall below expectations. Less than 50 percent of students who took the tests passed the math portion, with 53 percent passing the reading exam.
Rob Manning / OPB
A survey out Thursday from a Portland think tank digs into the controversy around standardized testing.
The Northwest Evaluation Association found students tend to support tests that help them in the classroom. Many parents, teachers and students reported skepticism of end-of-year state exams.
NWEA chief executive Matt Chapman said how long it takes to see the test scores matters to many test takers.
“This is where I think you see a lot of distinction between some of the accountability assessments where you don’t get the results for months and months based on a spring test," Chapman said. "By the time you get the results, it’s way too late — versus assessments that are in the moment, where you get the results essentially immediately.
"Teachers can do something with that,” Chapman said.
Chapman said there were some different responses based on the income strata parents came from. He said those responses were somewhat surprising, and he only has theories as to why less affluent parents responded the way they did.
“People in lower income levels see accountability assessments more positively,” Chapman said.
Specifically, Chapman suggested less affluent parents are more likely to view state test results as a way to ensure schools are watching achievement gaps – and acting to close them.
“It forces a review of each and every child, so that students are not ignored,” he said.
Chapman said the results have significance as states like Oregon re-evaluate their approaches to testing.
The NWEA survey also looked at the level of communication and understanding among teachers, administrators and parents. Chapman is in the assessment business, but he concluded there's a lot of room for improvement.