State Testing and Virutal Schools

The question was posed recently, does this virtual school, or that one have the kids take the state standardized tests. I've heard the question before, so I thought I'd address it here.

All public schools in the state of Wisconsin require the students participate in State testing. That is part of being a public school. (9th, 11th and 12th graders are not tested. I have no knowledge if 1st and 2nd graders are tested). But, everyone else must be tested. Failure to have at least 95% of the students in a particular school take the test two years in a row will cause a school to be "put on probation" If the school does not get 95% of the students taking the test, the Department of Public Instruction can take away the schools funding. (Section (I) - part of No Child Left Behind Act)

If you want to avoid having your child tested by the state, do not enroll in a public school. As we've all heard, nothing in this life is free. Driving my children to the testing location is part of what I pay to keep my school open and free. (following the other rules of the school like submitting papers on time, attending elluminates etc., those are the other part of the "pay")

All virtual schools handle state testing pretty much the same way. They all pick locations around the state. They all try to make testing as comfortable as possible. It's always around the same time every year, late October or early November. Some schools are more regimented about the actual test. Others, if the proctor sees that everyone is done with part A, they won't wait the entire time before going on to part B. That is more the choice of the proctor than the school. I've seen it go both ways. The tests can be scheduled for two days (if the child is in 4th or 8th grade, when the testing is more encompassing.) I've heard of schools that even arranged those to be done in one day to avoid a longer commute.

Personally, I think the schools should all be a bit more flexible in how they deal with testing. Parents do have to drive their children to the testing site. Most families have multiple children, not all of them in a virtual school. This could mean child care costs or other issues. Yes, the state requires the proctors of the exam to hold a valid teachers license. But, really,would it be so very difficult to pay a substitute teacher (or 2 or 3) for two weeks? That substitute could proctor exams in multiple locations around the state. One teacher could proctor exams in 10 additional locations. (5 days times 2 weeks) That alone would make a huge impact on parents ability to get their child to the location.

Insight schools uses (or used, it's been two years since I've had a student at Insight require standardized testing) their iMentors to proctor exams. This gives them a few more testing location options for students.