Diane Smart has seen the stress and strain Praxis I puts on some teachers.
For their sake, she's hoping the Virginia Board of Education lowers the scoring standards later this month for the general-knowledge teacher assessment test.
"If you know your job is on the line, you get test anxiety," Smart said in her fifth-grade classroom at Spotsylvania County's Riverview Elementary School. "I feel for people who have failed it repeatedly--and I know they're great teachers."
Smart is finishing a Master of Education degree at the University of Mary Washington. She breezed through Praxis I, missing just two questions on the math test.
Virginia has the highest minimum required scores of the 28 states that use Praxis I. While most teachers pass the state requirements, others struggle.
Minimums too high?Some say it's good the state has the highest standards. Others believe the test doesn't measure a teacher's ability and forces bad test-takers to find jobs elsewhere.
On Oct. 28, the state Board of Education will consider lowering the standards in one or more of the three assessment areas.
Since July 1996, Virginia has required certified teachers to meet minimum Praxis I scores within their first three years.
People who have taught full time for two years at an accredited school outside Virginia don't have to take it.
The standardized test is similar to the SAT. Each section takes about an hour to complete.
The reading section tests comprehension of included passages. Math problems are at about a ninth-grade level. The writing section tests grammar and requires a writing sample.
Scores range from 150 to 190. Virginia demands 178 for math and reading, and 176 for writing.
The average requirements in other states are about 172 for math, 174 for reading and 172 for writing.
Smart thinks the discrepancy is unfair and can force people to take the $130 test multiple times.
She points to No Child Left Behind, which is the same in all states, and says Praxis I requirements also should be uniform.
Karen Hoskins, licensure specialist for the Spotsylvania County school system, disagrees.
"We're exclusive," Hoskins said. "We want people who are the best."
Hoskins added that Virginia's standards make it hard to recruit. She said the state loses teachers to North Carolina, whose minimum section scores are three points lower on average.
Of the 260 teachers Spotsylvania hired last year, Hoskins said four didn't meet the standards. She said 48 of this year's 270 hires still have to pass Praxis I--most of them newer teachers from states not requiring it.
Caroline County has lost excellent teachers who struggle with Praxis I, according to Superintendent Stanley Jones. He added that some taught classes in which 90 percent of students passed the Standards of Learning tests.
According to 2002-03 statewide data, about 92 percent passed the reading section, and 86 percent scored at least the minimum on math. People fared worst in writing, with 82 percent passing.
Change on the horizon?The state Board of Education hasn't reviewed minimum scores since it established them in 1995. In January, the board asked for a study.
The Educational Testing Service, the creators of the test, recommended changing the requirements to 172 on reading, 177 on writing and 175 on math.
That would lower the requirements for reading and math but raise them a point on writing.
The Virginia Department of Education's Advisory Board on Teacher Education and Licensure agreed for writing and math, but suggested that reading stay at 178.
At its Sept. 22 meeting, the Board of Education tabled the issue. Department spokesman Charles Pyle said the board wanted another month for review.
At the September meeting, the Board allowed ACT--another college admission test--scores to substitute for Praxis I.
In March, the board approved the SAT as a substitute. People scoring at least 1100 overall don't have to take Praxis I.
In 2001, the board allowed people with combined Praxis I scores of 532 to pass. That addressed concerns that, for example, English teachers failed because of math weaknesses, and vice versa.
Virginia teachers also must pass Praxis II, which examines teachers' knowledge of their subject areas. Hoskins said fewer people struggle on Praxis II.
Although Smart didn't struggle on either, she hopes the guidelines will change for those who do.
"You've got plenty of other stressors as a teacher," she says.
To reach BILL FREEHLING: 540/374-5424 bfreehling@freelancestar.com