Indiana kids will see more standardized testing this year as schools opt to participate in “checkpoint” evaluations meant to identify struggling students sooner.
Schools had the option this year to begin the testing, which involves three shorter evaluations spread throughout the academic year before a shortened final test in the spring.
The checkpoints are not meant to be “high-stakes” but rather diagnostic to identify students needing remediation earlier in the school year.
While some parents are worried that handing out more testing throughout the school year may increase student stress, some experts like Sara Witmer , an associate professor of school psychology at Michigan State University, say that as long as the changes to testing are well communicated and students understand that the tests are low-stakes, students shouldn’t have to deal with problematic levels of anxiety.
“If there are concerns about student anxiety, it can be important to model and teach students skills for coping with their anxiety and effectively approaching anxiety-producing situations rather than allowing for or encouraging avoidance of anxiety-producing situations,” Witmer told IndyStar.