I was talking to a mom friend the other day and she mentioned that in NY State it is now required for kids to get "Tested" before they enter kindergarten. Not for a G&T program, just straight up kindergarten!
Does anyone know if this is true?
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I know nothing about New York (West Coaster, here) but most states "test" kids before they go into public school. The test is really just a skills test to see where they are (do they know their numbers/letters, can they count, can they recognize/duplicate patterns, etc...) when they enter school. It helps teachers put the kids in the right class or track and it helps them chart the kid's progress during the school year. It's not like a kid can "fail" this testing; it's a placement test, not an entrance exam.
Like I said, I know nothing about NY, but if this is the "testing" you're referring to, it's been done across the country for decades now. I remember being tested back in 1990, so it's definitely nothing new.
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@Honeybee: hm I guess I don't remember my SIL talking about that with my nieces and nephews. I hear her and her friends talk about testing all the time but I thought it was for G&T programs. Like at nephew's party her one friend was saying how her son tested a 95 then her daughter tested a 99. I'd assumed with grading it was an elective test for the G&T program.
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Our school tests our incoming kindergarten students. We don't have a g/t program- we are a private school.
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If it's what I'm thinking, my MIL runs a nursery school, which has UPK. She does talk about testing, and I'm not sure what information is given out to parents. It includes things like drawing a picture of themselves, writing their name, and other things along those lines. Basically if they have learned anything. But, I'm not involved in any of it, so I'm not positive.
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@pmerr: good point. I'm assuming IF there is testing UPK should prep them for it??
I wonder if @mrs. bee: has any information on it?
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@regberadaisy: I would assume!
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Yes, I actually remember going in to school before kindergarten to do testing, so I would imagine this is still in practice in NYS now.
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@regberadaisy: If it is placement testing there is a good chance you may not even notice the testing or really know about it. We do reading entrance testing for kids during the first 10 school days to place them.
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hmm i haven't heard anything about it. how new is this?
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@Mrs. Bee: my friend heard about this while searching for a daycare for her daughter who is turning 2 in September. So I would assume at least 3 years old. Her daycare preps them for this "test".
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We underwent kindergarten readiness tests last spring. It's not really a big deal in hindsight, but I understand the anxiety that can ensue from the concept of testing kids so young!
In my experience, and from what I've heard, schools (public or private, in whatever state) just want to make sure children are ready. It's likely not a problem if your child goes to preschool or daycare already.
My DD underwent two readiness tests. One was one-on-one with an education specialist (who worked for a company that preps kids and issues a standardized test) and one was more laid-back in a group setting with the teacher at a potential school.
Both tests basically looked to see if she can follow directions and knows basic shapes, letters, and numbers... they look to see how she can hold a conversation and tell a story... how she holds a pencil, draws a picture, writes her name... and some simple gross motor stuff like catching a ball, hopping, skipping...
Like I said, it was pretty simple now that I look back on it!
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My mom just retired as a kindergarten aide in the next state, and for us, the "testing" is readiness. She said one of the tests is to draw a picture of a person. The more detailed the better.
Another is to hand the kid a book and ask them to "read" it. It's to see if they can distinguish it from being upside down, if they know to turn the pages, if they know to begin in the top left corner, go across the page to the next line, start at the top of the next page, etc.
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They "test" here. It's too see if they know their letters, any phonics, following directions, etc. Like @Looch described--not for tracking purposes or anything like that. I remember doing this as a kid in California, too, so it's been going on for awhile.
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@SAHM0811: @Happygal: @looch: thanks for your descriptions! That sounds a lot more low key than I thought!
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@Locavore_mama: well, in today's educational setting, it wouldn't surprise me if testing crept in earlier and earlier! But most likely, it's a school readiness thing. I was surprised to hear that one of my nephews was asked to read CVC words for his kindergarten screening. But I don't think he would have been assigned to a different class or anything like that if he couldn't have done it.
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my nephew is going to kindergarten this coming sept and he did not have to get tested. She just signed him up for school.
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