Last year's ISAT and PSAE scores are finally out--at least some of them--just in time for this year's testing. (Out-of-state TEN members: did this happen in your state, too?)

Illinois students made fairly large gains, especially in elementary school. What caused this improvement? The Tribune outlined the disagreement:

State and local educators attribute the improvement to smarter pupils and teachers' laser-like focus on the state learning standards--the detailed list of what pupils should know at each grade level. They also say that the more child-friendly exams, which included color and better graphics, helped pupils.

But testing experts and critics suggest that the unprecedented growth is more likely the result of changes to the exams.

Most notably, the state dramatically lowered the passing bar on the 8th-grade math test. As a result--after hovering at about 50 percent for five years--the pass rate shot up to 78 percent last year.

Teachers: what do you think? Does this ring true to you, or is it beside the point? As you start this year's ISAT testing, did last year's results impact your teaching?

A few resources:
This year's ISAT scores by county. [click HERE]
Alexander Russo links to the Trib and Sun Times coverage. [click HERE, or just go to his site and browse]

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