The hallways of Westford Academy have been buzzing with news of the controversial PARCC testing holding its first field test on April 9th. This topic has come even more to light after last night’s school committee meeting. Students were informed of the option to not participate in the testing, which would be detrimental to the future of this assessment.
Once introduced to this idea, several students have made the decision to not take the test. With only 63 students involved in the test, even a small percentage of opt-outs could severely impact the results which would be used for national purposes. WA cannot punish students for opting out and they have even provided compensation for taking the test such as community service hours and a free lunch.
Students across the board are mainly concerned about the amount of class time they would be missing as the testing runs for two hours each day for three days. This is almost equivalent to missing a full day of classes. This is a concern for many students, especially those in Advanced Placement and honors classes.
However, the results of this test in the broader spectrum are far more important than missing a few hours of classes. The results will be used to better structure the PARCC test in future years. Without sufficient data from our school district, the test will lose valuable information necessary for future testing.
I foresee that a good amount of the students who choose to opt out will be those who are more grade-conscious and may be enrolled in the honors and AP classes. Students that are not as concerned about missing a few classes either due to the class level or their desire to not be in class I believe are more likely to not opt-out. This would create statistics that are lacking in a holistic view of students and produce results that are inaccurate.
The school understands that it is inconvenient for the students who were selected, but it is necessary for the growth of the test. Administration is providing alternatives, such as taking the test after school, to avoid all the class time lost.
Furthermore, in the real world, life is not always convenient. Sometimes we have to do things that cut into our daily lives, such as jury duty. No one wants to be called into jury duty, because it can be a long, boring process that causes people to miss work, time at home, and other life events, but we still participate in it. This field testing is a nice preview of the real world, where we can not just opt-out of obligations, because they are inconvenient for us.
At its core, the issue is clear; there can be no field test without field subjects. By allowing students to opt-out, not just at Westford Academy but across the country, the data will be skewed to the point where the information is no longer valid. This is one instance where I believe students need to not be selfish and stick with the test for its long term implications.
