Project Based Learning vs. High Stakes Testing

Project Based Learning Versus High Stakes Testing In the United States, we are in an educational crisis situation. The 1980s began educational reform in America (Coley & Goertz). It continues today with the Common Core Standards. Not all children learn in the same way. We must address this in the field of education. What is happening to the students from low socioeconomic families who do not have the financial means to hire tutors for their children? Are children really learning anything other than just regurgitation of facts for a test? Students continue to be pushed into doing more, at a younger age when they are not developmentally ready.

‘I hear and I forget. I see and I remember.

I do and I understand.’ Confucius (’12 famous Confucius quotes on education and learning’, 2017). The current model of education is about teaching to the state-mandated, high stakes tests. Increasing emphasis has been linked to an increase in anxiety in students with disabilities, women, and minority students (Von der Embase, N.

, & Hasson, R. 2012). Ohio, graduation requirements have changed several times since 1993-94.

For the class of 1993, students were required to earn 18 credits during years 9-12 and demonstrate at least a 9th-grade proficiency in reading, writing, math, and citizenship to earn a diploma(Coley & Goertz, 1990). As recently as 2014-2017 students were required to pass the high stakes Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) in addition to earning 20 credits in core courses and additional instruction in economics, financial literacy and fine arts(‘Ohio Graduation Tests’).

It was decided by The Ohio Department of Education that there is no one-size-fits-all pathway to graduation.

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Students in the class of 2019 and beyond are required to have 20 credits in the core subjects, economics, financial literacy and two semesters of fine arts. Additionally, students must earn 18 points in their end of course exams, even if they passed the class and earn the credit.

Ohio has added the Industry Credential and Workforce Readiness and College and Career Readiness tests as alternative pathways to graduation(‘Ohio Graduation Tests’). This atmosphere of high stakes testing has resulted in a reduction of students graduating within four years. In the 2010-11 graduating class, 80% of Ohio students graduated on time. Between the 2011-12 and 2013-14, Ohio saw an increase in successful graduation rates. By the 2014-15 school year, we were seeing a decrease in graduates (High School Graduation Rates by State). Low-income students are at a direct disadvantage in comparison to their more affluent counterparts because parents cannot afford to hire tutors to help their children. If test scores are any indication, we have an educational crisis on our hands.

Fairtest.org defines “high stakes” testing as a test that is very important to the decision-making process or to be able to override other information such as credits earned (The Dangerous Consequences of High-Stakes Standardized Testing). Regardless of how well a student does in a class, or what credit they earned, they may not make it to graduation. Some students do well in testing situations. Others may know the curriculum content but forget it as soon as they have the test put in front of them.

Students who suffer from test anxiety end up with inaccurately low scores. Low socioeconomic students may attend poorly funded schools, have classrooms in which overcrowding is an issue, instructors who are not qualified in the subject area they teach or are lacking computers, and adequate texts to learn from. High stakes testing has led to grade retention and an increase in the number of students who drop out.

Students fail to improve academically and have damaged self-esteem when faced with retention. Learning disabled as well as English as a second language students struggle as well with high stakes testing. Teaching to the test has become the norm with resources that were once spent on library books, are now spent on testing materials. Reading short texts to answer multiple choice questions, does not translate into depth or passion for reading and learning, resulting in students not becoming lifelong learners. The climate of “teaching to the test” is driving talented teachers out of the education profession in record numbers.

About eight percent of teachers are leaving the teaching profession each year with fifty-five percent stating “dissatisfaction” with twenty-five percent referring to the testing and accountability measures that have been put into place (Will, ‘Teachers Are Quitting Because They’re Dissatisfied. That’s a Crisis, Scholars Say’, 2017). Rarely do these talented teachers get to bring their creativity into their lessons to instill a deeper learning perspective in their students. In addition to having to teach to a testing situation, they also are forced to collect data on Student Learning Objectives (SLO) in areas that are not on a standardized test. Intervention Specialists focus on students with multiple learning disabilities, who are on Individual Education Plans (IEP’s) or 504 Plans, where differentiation and modification of lessons to teach their students is part of their responsibilities. All teachers are evaluated based on their test scores and SLO’s.

The Gary and Jerri- Ann Jacobs High Tech High, located in San Diego, California is home to forward-thinking educators, who realize that education as it was designed in 1893, was not about pursuing questions about the world and developing your unique talents. The focus at High Tech High is to make education meaningful and challenging through hands-on Project Based Learning (PBL). Doctor Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences would apply at High Tech High. Students take on project-based learning according to their interests and intelligence. The offerings are seemingly endless. One student might be a spatial learner, while at the same time kinesthetic and have a need to build projects and put their visual experience to use.

All courses are cross-curricular in the aspect that the student’s projects may include humanities, geometry or other higher level math, art, and physics, just to name a few. The school’s “Urban Re-Farm” encompasses an immersion philosophy when it comes to student education. Students focus on philosophy and engineering as they build and design a sustainable farm in the heart of the city.

The Urban Re-Farm project forced students to think about the diverse relational aspects humans have with their food and its production. Project students learned about upcycling waste into planters, chicken coops, and other buildings, as well as the construction of gray water irrigation tanks needed to sustain this endeavor (Urban Re-Farm). In addition to cooperative collaboration, Urban Re-Farm participants were able to learn how to work within computer-aided drafting programs to design and develop their space specific needs.

High Tech High North County reports a 96% graduation rate for the 2018 graduating class (California Department of Education). In comparison, the state graduation average of 83%, (Fensterwald, J), and would indicate that project-based learning has benefits. In today’s world, it is not enough for students to graduate high school with the ability to regurgitate facts learned to take a high stakes test. Students must have a solid basis in reading all types of texts and being able to comprehend what was read, be able to write in a fluid and understandable fashion, and have an understanding of functional math skills. Along with the basic skills, students learn to work as a team, solve problems, implement time management skills, and using high tech tools.

All skills that will benefit students in their future. Teachers work with one another in a cross-curricular manner to bring their personal areas of expertise to bring learning to life. The project-based model of education allows teachers multiple assessment opportunities and allows the child who may not test well, to show their teacher their capabilities and understanding of the lessons. Project-based learning encourages children to take charge of their learning and promotes lifelong learners. (Person, ‘Why Is Project-Based Learning Important?’).

Education in the 21st century is not one size fits all as demonstrated by the success of schools focused on project-based learning. Teachers are undervalued in society today and it is no longer a noble calling. Students are failing to graduate in the standard four years because high stakes testing is providing stumbling blocks in front of them. In America, we need an overhaul in education where teachers can get back to teaching and sharing their gifts and talents with their students. Project Based Learning may be the key to increasing graduation rates in our country, as well as preparing students for the workforce. Mark Twain once said, “ Don’t let your boy’s schooling get in the way of his education”.

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