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Young writers don't let FCAT tension dog them
By DONNA WINCHESTER, Times Staff Writer
ST. PETERSBURG -- Allen Hixon came to school Tuesday morning ready to show his stuff. The 9-year-old had gotten a good night's sleep. He had eaten a hearty breakfast of French toast and bacon. He had arrived at school on time. Clutching two freshly sharpened No. 2 pencils, he listened carefully as his teacher gave last-minute instructions for the important test he was about to take: Stay focused. Keep your head down. Use your 45 minutes wisely. "I'm not nervous," he said as he polished off a carton of juice. "I'm ready to get it over with." Allen was among more than 8,500 Pinellas County fourth-graders who took the writing portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test on Tuesday. The test, which also was administered to the district's eighth- and 10th-graders, is the first in a series of state-mandated tests Florida's public school students take every year. Tuesday's test, previously called Florida Writes!, required students to expound on a topic in a narrative, expository or persuasive style, depending on grade level. Students were given a writing "prompt" and had 45 minutes to complete their essays. The prospect can provoke anxiety for teachers as well as students, but Allen and the other children in Mary Salazar's class at Mount Vernon Elementary School, 4629 13th Ave. N, seemed to be taking things in stride Tuesday morning. "This is your chance to show what you know about writing, and you know a lot," Salazar told them. "What you do today will show the people in Pinellas County and the state of Florida that you know how to write." A lot rides on the test, despite the students' apparent calm. Their scores will be added to the ones they attain on reading, mathematics and science tests, which will be administered next month. Their overall scores will form the basis of the state's accountability system of assigning a letter grade -- A through F -- to Mount Vernon. Schools that do well are eligible for state money. Those that do poorly can fall into a funk as they have to explain themselves to school officials and to parents. In the era of "controlled choice," parents may see a school's poor grade and decide to look past whatever else the school may offer. Last year, Mount Vernon raised its grade from a D to a C. Principal Valerie White is hoping the school shows further improvement this year. "We want to go to a B. I'd like to be an A, but we're taking a step-by-step improvement approach," she said. "We're focused on how to improve every day." FCAT critics charge that many districts have tailored their teaching to the writing test since the state introduced it in 1993. Some say it forces students to learn a formulaic way of writing. But Elaine Cutler, the district's assistant superintendent for elementary education, said the test is helpful nevertheless in measuring the quality and content of student work. "It's a writing sample," she said. "It's not a fill-in-the-blank, it's not a choose-the-right-answer. The more in-depth, and the more contextual a child can write, the higher his or her score will be." Possible scores range from 1 to 6 on the writing test. A score of 3.5 is considered passing, but White and her fourth-grade teachers encouraged the students to aim for a 5 or a 6. Putting the test on a personal level motivates them to try harder, White said. "It's better than saying 'We need to do this for the state.' I don't think that works for the kids," she said. "I like to focus on that sense of individual pride and accomplishment they'll feel when they get their scores."
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
