State assessment design decisions inevitably shape classroom instruction, often narrowing curriculum and teaching practices¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (2 entries) · qualitative r1 · q2
Currency · newest study 2024 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Educators report that state assessments drive decisions about instructional scope and sequence, classroom practices, content selection, and local assessment purchases. → Badrinarayan 2024 q2 i? Instruction tends to shift to meet, not exceed, what is represented on assessments, functionally lowering the bar for students most in need of support. → Badrinarayan 2024 (2)

Evidence¶

Badrinarayan 2024¶

Badrinarayan, A. (2024). Design principles for instructionally relevant assessment systems. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/111.528

q2 · i? · qualitative · r1

Educator insights gathered by the Learning Policy Institute in conversations with teachers, principals, and instructional coaches about how state assessment systems influence teaching and learning (Table 1). One teacher reported: "I decide which units to do a lighter touch on or skip altogether based on what will be covered on the test."

"I cannot finish my full [high-quality instructional materials] within a given school year, so I decide which units to do a lighter touch on or skip altogether based on what will be covered on the test."

Badrinarayan 2024 (2)¶

Badrinarayan, A. (2024). Design principles for instructionally relevant assessment systems. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/111.528

q2 · i? · theoretical · r2

Lessons from the field section reporting what leaders and educators told the institute across nearly every state: "instruction shifts to meet and reflect, not exceed, what is represented on assessments," which the authors argue functionally lowers the bar for students most in need of support.

"teachers share that the reality is that in most cases, instruction shifts to meet and reflect, not exceed, what is represented on assessments."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Narrow, skills-only KEAs can narrow the kindergarten curriculum and foster inappropriate teaching, while holistic observational assessment can drive developmentally appropriate practice — a narrower finding that bears on this claim
• Instructionally relevant decisions influenced by state assessments are made by many actors beyond day-to-day teacher-student interactions — related
• School reform efforts often narrowly focus on instruction, curriculum and pedagogy while overlooking organizational and community conditions — related
• Assessment of young multilingual learners is hampered by a dearth of valid, linguistically appropriate measures and by English-only administration — related