Opinion
Education Letter to the Editor

Author of Essay on NAEP Responds to Criticism

January 17, 2012 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

I was pleased to see that the Dec. 14, 2011, issue contained a response by Cornelia Orr, a noted assessment expert who serves as the executive director of the National Assessment Governing Board, to my earlier Commentary (“NAEP’s Odd Definition of Proficiency,” October 26, 2011).

Ms. Orr properly corrects me for wrongly identifying a NAGB staff member as a board member. However, the remainder of her letter offers only a weak rebuttal of my main criticisms: NAGB uses the term “proficient” in a way that makes common understanding of the term meaningless. Congress insists that the National Assessment of Educational Progress benchmarks be interpreted with caution and used on a trial basis. NAGB has long needed to externally validate its benchmarks, a point which Ms. Orr essentially concedes.

I am pleased to see that NAEP has planned or mounted 30 studies to address the most recent criticisms.

Ms. Orr claims that I “specifically” said the “proficient level is set too high.” I did not say that. She argues that I’m in favor of lowering standards. On the contrary, as a significant contributor to “A Nation at Risk,” I have long supported the highest educational standards.

My criticism is that, according to NAGB’s own experts, students whom most people would consider proficient in a subject often fail to meet NAEP’s definition of proficiency. I worry also that NAEP’s contractors run the risk of comparing apples with oranges when they compare the achievement distribution of students in American schools (which enroll all low-income students and all students with disabilities) with achievement distributions in Asian nations and cities (which frequently exclude both demographics).

James J. Harvey

Executive Director

National Superintendents Roundtable

Seattle, Wash.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the January 18, 2012 edition of Education Week as Author of Essay on NAEP Responds to Criticism

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read