Derek Neary
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (May 27/05) - Standardized tests are poor markers of overall student performance and will be statistically insignificant in the Deh Cho, according to Nolan Swartzentruber.

Grade 9 students at Thomas Simpson school wrote the Alberta Achievement Test for Language Arts/English on May 19. Among them were Dawn Bell and Gerald Hardisty.

Director of the Dehcho Divisional Board of Education, Swartzentruber said the Alberta Achievement Tests in math and English - written by Grades 3, 6 and 9 students last week - are not "a good test of what children are learning."

The Department of Education phased in the exams across the territory this year. Charles Dent, minister of Education, said five of the NWT's eight jurisdictions voluntarily used the tests in the past. Those regions wanted the costs of the tests covered by the government, so the education department acquiesced and made the tests mandatory in the NWT.

Dent said the results will be viewed broadly to assess whether there are any deficiencies in the educational system that need to be addressed. There will be no attempt to evaluate individual schools, teachers or students, he assured.

"You have to be cautious with how the numbers are used," said Dent, who added that the exams are to be administered yearly at the same grade levels so progress can be measured. "The most interesting information is going to be the aggregate information."

Martina Norwegian, chair of the Dehcho Education Council, said the Department of Education imposed the tests despite her council's stated opposition.

She said the students should be viewed as individuals, not as statistics.

"We have to grade the children on their (individual) abilities rather than as a whole," said Norwegian.

Other members of the Legislative Assembly and the public in general have been calling for increased accountability and the tests are partly a response to that, Dent said.

Swartzentruber acknowledged the need for the Deh Cho's school system to be accountable. He said that has been addressed by sending home portfolios of students' work so parents can see the progress for themselves.

He criticized the Alberta Achievement math tests because they simply use a multiple choice format. The English tests, however, do have essay-style questions.

Regardless, he said he prefers a culture-based, holistic approach to learning. He referred to a cultural camp in Trout Lake, which he attended, as an example. Students from multiple schools took part and interacted in the on-the-land lessons.

Exams blended

Even Grade 12 departmental exams are blended with classroom performance so students can demonstrate learning in other ways, he noted.

Swartzentruber added that many jurisdictions are moving away from such exams.

Results from the tests, which will be marked in Edmonton, are expected over the summer.