Spring heralds the Standardized Testing and Reporting or STAR testing season for schools in the Temecula Valley Unified School District.
Local students are in the middle of state-wide testing. The window for STAR testing is from Apr. 13 - May 17. (Photo courtesy of Flickr)
The window for the statewide test is scheduled from April 13 through May 17, according to Diana Damon-White, TVUSD’s person in charge of scheduling the testing periods district-wide.
“All year long our students are learning the state’s content standards in their daily curriculum,” TVUSD spokesperson Melanie Norton explained. “The STAR test is gauging student retention and comprehension of the content standards.”
In preparation for the lengthy testing session, teachers and principals encourage parents to make sure their children are well rested and are eating a full and healthy breakfast to help keep students focused during testing, Norton added.
“My daughter always got nervous and anxious when STAR testing rolled around,” Amelie Gomez said about daughter, a former Chaparral High School student. “She fretted and we just reassured her and made sure she got plenty of sleep and plenty to eat.”
The statewide test has been administered in California schools since 1999.
“The test window is 12 days before and 12 days after the date when 85 percent of the instructional days have been completed,” district officials said.
Once the testing is done, the results are analyzed at the district and state levels to look at areas of strength and weakness.
“The results are one factor that can be looked at to see how well students are meeting the standards,” district data base and software specialist Cheryl Langley explained. “The state uses the results of the tests to help determine state and federal accountability models.”
Stephanie D. Schulte is a writer/photographer for SWRNN. She can be reached at stephanie.schulte@swrnn.com.
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