Three times a year there are two questions that you hear frequently around DHS, what is Star Testing, and why should I have to take it? These questions and more have been voiced many times through these halls, and it has become clear that there is a disconnect between what students think about Star Testing and the administration’s overall goal with it. Conducting interviews with a select few of both students and administration has successfully shed some light on Star Testing as a whole.
Carson Palmer, a junior at DHS and also an honor roll student hasn’t been informed about how the school uses Star Testing results. He thinks that it’s not necessary and downright repetitive with the questions that are asked on the Star Tests. On the contrary, Ben Gonzales says that he has been informed about the purpose of Star Testing. He thinks that it’s fine for freshmen and sophomores, but begins to become redundant by the time someone is a Junior. He feels that seniors shouldn’t have to take Star Testing at all. Another perspective is expressed by Finnegan. Finnegan Stanifer doesn’t necessarily enjoy taking the Star Testing, but he has an opinion that aligns more closely to the administration’s perspective. He feels that the tests accurately measure how a student is progressing and that the tests accomplish their purpose. It may even be helpful in preparing for the SAT.
The interview with Robert Aspen was very enlightening as to the purpose of Star Tests. Mr. Aspen is the person in the school who organizes all of the Star Testing and school-wide testing in general. He said, “We take the Star Test because it’s a good way to measure growth in reading and mathematics, the two foundations of academics at our school. We like the Star Test because it does not take very long. We have experimented with other programs in the past, like Iready, that take much longer. So it doesn’t interfere as much with the school and it is closely aligned with higher stakes testing like the SAT.”
According to statements made by Principal Jon Hoerl Star Testing has lots of correlations to how students are going to do on the SAT. Even though Star Testing has its flaws, such as giving repeat questions to higher scoring students or reusing older material, when compared to other testing platforms like IReady, it’s not as time-consuming, gives valuable information, and is good practice for the SAT. Since last year “we saw a 27-point increase from the previous year” working towards a goal of 1100 average in SAT scores.
Students may dislike taking the Star Test, but it’s kind of like going to the dentist. It’s not much fun, but it definitely serves a purpose and can be helpful to students and administrators. Taking the Star Test gives teachers and administrators a snapshot of how students are doing. It’s important for students to do their best so that the school can get accurate information for class placements and get a gauge on how they may do on the SAT.