The Foundation Skills Assessment (FSA) – tests of reading, writing and math delivered province-wide every year in Grades 4 and 7 – are coming up. Schools are expected to administer the tests between January 14 and February 22 this year.
The B.C. Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils (BCCPAC) has developed an FSA information kit for parents. Find it here.
The B.C. Education Ministry has prepared a brochure advising parents why it thinks the tests are important. In summary, it says the tests help determine whether students are learning vital skills and improving over time, if there are any significant trends in schools, districts or across the province and how certain groups of students (such as aboriginals) are doing. Find the brochure here.
The BCTF is opposed to these standardized tests, stating they are expensive to administer, do not help students learn, take time away from learning, take resources away from the classroom, are misused by the Fraser Insitute to compare schools, and do not provide real help. For more information on the BCTF perspective, click here.
Recent media coverage of the FSAs:
http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2013/01/07/another-year-another-fight-over-standardized-tests-in-b-c/
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