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The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
The state is considering lessening the weight of end-of-course exams for Tennessee high school students, changing how final course grades would be calculated, as policy makers continue to seek a balance between rigorous academic expectations and realistic grading policies.
End-of-course exams currently count for 15-25% of a student’s final grade for courses that require those state tests. The Tennessee Department of Education has proposed a change, however, that would drop that weighting to just 5-15%.
School districts have pushed for the change, saying it is difficult for them to calculate those final grades because they do not always receive those scores from the state until the last minute.
Some have argued that the pressure of state testing is too high. However, others are critical of the move to lower expectations for students.
State Representative Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood-District 61) asked during a recent meeting, “Five percent strikes me as a bit low. Why would we want to lessen the final impact of an end-of-course exam from the current 15% to just 5%?”
Some educators argue, however, that standardized testing itself already lessens true learning.
Patrick Basnett, a representative for Professional Educators of Tennessee, argued, “They’re force-feeding information to students to pass a specific test.”
The change was unanimously recommended by the Joint Government Operations Committee in their Wednesday meeting. The proposal will be included in a bill that will be considered during the upcoming General Assembly.
