‘Wild swings’ in scoring shows test’s
flaws, says Manville superintendent
By:Krzysztof Scibiorski
Local school superintendents haven’t been impressed with the state test for elementary school students, pointing to the "wild swings" in the results and stress on young students as reasons to eliminate the test.
During last week’s Board of Education meeting, Manville schools’ Superintendent Francis X. Heelan announced the district’s results on the third annual Elementary School Proficiency Assessment.
The test, given to all fourth-grade students in New Jersey, includes language arts, mathematics and science components. According to Dr. Heelan, "the ESPA is considered a difficult test for the youngsters. It reflects the state’s new, raised curriculum standards for all students."
Manville’s students recorded a dramatic rise in their scores on the language arts section with 81 percent attaining sufficient proficiency. According to Dr. Heelan, in the previous year, only 24 percent of the district’s fourth-graders attained sufficient proficiency in language arts. The district’s science proficiency rating fell from 99 percent in 2000 to 90 percent in 2001; and in math from 73 percent to 59 percent this year.
In commenting the results to the board Dr. Heelan dismissed the ESPA’s current usefulness.
"This makes you wonder why the scores go up and down so rapidly. If you ask me, this test raises more questions about the test givers and not the takers."
Peter Peretzman, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Education, claimed that changes had been made to the ESPA administration and grading following input from state educators.
"During the first two years of its existence the ESPA was not an accurate reflection of the fourth-graders’ ability. Now, however, the test is a fairer measurement of the students’ achievement," Mr. Peretzman stated.
However, Hillsborough Superintendent of Schools Robert Gulick, shares Dr. Heelan’s opposition to the test.
"I feel a great dissatisfaction and concern about a ‘high-stakes’ test such as this being given to 10-year-olds," he said.
Mr. Peretzman said the test had been shortened in order to make them more suitable for the fourth-graders following the ESPA’s first administration in 1999. Also, Mr. Peretzman said that sample questions to the test have been provided to the students and parents that have made the students more comfortable with the test.
According to Dr. Gulick, "The ESPA results do not represent any credible information about the performance of the districts’ children. It has been a horrible experience for the educators and is a waste of millions of dollars and much class time."
In a later interview, Dr. Heelan offered possible explanations for the vagaries in the test results.
"It seems like the state gives contracts on these tests to the lowest bidder around, which in this situation is the least effective process. As a result we have these wild swings in the results which make the test have no credibility at all," he said. He also indicated that the fact that the test is only in its third year contributes to the difficulties with it.
Both the Hillsborough and Manville school districts conduct nonstate mandated standardized testing among third- and fifth-grade students. The districts both use commercially created achievement assessment tests, Terra Nova in Manville and Iowa Test of Basic Skills in Hillsborough.
According to Dr. Gulick, these tests are not as long as the ESPA and they are more in line with the students’ abilities compared with the ESPA, described by both the superintendents as being "very difficult." Mr. Peretzman disagreed with the assesment indicating that ESPA "can be a difficult test but is a fair test to the students."
"For fourth-graders, the best assessment of a child’s progress is the teacher that is in the classroom every day," Dr. Gulick said. However, he is a strong supporter of the state’s core curriculum requirements as well as the other statewide standardized tests the 11th grade HSPA and the eighth grade GEPA.
Dr. Heelan held out hope that in the future the ESPA might become a more reliable resource in evaluating the students. He said that it frequently takes some time for statewide academic programs to become accepted and useful.
"For example, in the beginning, the state’s school report cards were loony, but, now they have achieved a respectability and give a lot of useful information on how a school is doing its job," Dr. Heelen said.
Mr. Peretzman, the state department of education spokesman, was unable to provide a figure for what the state spends on the ESPA examination or even standartized testing in general. However, he concluded by saying that he could not disagree more with Dr. Gulick’s opinion of the ESPA. According to Mr. Peretzman, the state needs to be able to evaluate how the students perform in relation to the state core curriculum requirements, and the ESPA provides that opportunity.
Dr. Gulick maintains that he will continue to do everything in his power to have the state eliminate the "discredited" ESPA tests in the future.

