We knew this was coming… It’s been a sad tale for years. I believe there are reason for timing tests and that test makers need to articulate them. Yet, the College Board and the ACT refused to do so back in 2002 when threatened with a lawsuit. The mere threat led them to create the accommodations policy of no longer flagging tests that are taken with extended time–that is, tests that are not normed. And, thereby, they threw away the reasons for timing.
Hey, if there’s no reason to time tests–then stop scaring and stressing students. If there are reasons, then stand up for them–articulate and implement them. We ask no less of our teachers who do so every day.
This story has been a sad slow slog. Who will stand up for standards? norms? tests that actually mean what they say they mean? Not the SAT or the College Board, apparently–for the last almost 10 years.
(Call to stop timing the SAT and ACT from Fair Test).
About Miriam
Miriam Kurtzig Freedman, JD, MA—an expert in public education, focused on special education law— is a lawyer, author, speaker, consultant, and reformer.
For more than 35 years, Miriam worked with educators, parents, policy makers, and citizens to translate complex legalese into plain English and focus on good practices for children.
Now, she focuses her passion on reforming special education, with her new book, Special Education 2.0—Breaking Taboos to Build a NEW Education Law. Presentations include those at the AASA Conference, Orange County (CA), Boston College (MA), CADRE (OR), and the Fordham Institute (DC). Her writings have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Education Week, Education Next, Hoover Digest, The University of Chicago Law Review on line, DianeRavitch.net, and The Atlantic Monthly on line.
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