In this presentation to a task force on summative assessment, Dr. Sam Houston argues that the way student performance is measured directly shapes classroom instruction. He contends that simplistic, low‑stakes assessments lead to simplistic teaching, while sophisticated, performance‑based tasks that mirror real‑world applications can drive richer learning experiences. Houston emphasizes the need to involve teachers in the measurement process and to trust schools with assessment responsibilities. He critiques the over‑reliance on universal high‑stakes testing, noting that state test results hold little value for college admissions and contribute to student stress. He proposes sampling approaches—such as NAEP and PISA—as viable alternatives to testing every child continuously, and calls for assessment data to be delivered promptly so it can inform instruction, rather than arriving months later as a mere snapshot. Using analogies (e.g., weighing cows, shooting a basketball behind a curtain), he underscores that testing cannot by itself create excellence, and urges the task force to consider more meaningful, timely, and equitable assessment models.
Chapters
The Commission said measure what matters. You've heard the old cliché that, you know, that what gets measured is what gets taught. Well, I think there's a little extension of that, too, and that is, is that what— how something gets measured has an impact on how it's taught. If you measure in a very simplistic, mundane fashion, you can act in a simplistic and mundane fashion in the classroom. If you measure at a sophisticated performance level, asking for kids to demonstrate how they would use information like it's used in the real world, then the measures have to be different and probably the operation of measuring student performance has to be shared. You've got to trust the teachers and the schools to do part of that measurement. And give credit for it. No one ever said at all that accountability wasn't important. There was always the conversation about how do you determine that in a fair and equitable and efficient manner. We had a number of— I don't remember how many universities, I think 2 or 3 universities or more were represented and the community college people represented, and we talked to them about how they valued the test information that the state was generating on our young people, and did they give it value? And they indicated it had no value to them whatsoever as far as admitting a young person to their institution. We had, you know, those that were crying that we were stressing the young people way too much. That came from a number of different audiences. Including parents and others. We, at that time, they weren't stressed like they're being stressed now. So in closing, I would just say to you, your work's important, as I said at the beginning. You can't test yourself into excellence. I don't care what you try, you won't. Smart old farmer told me one time, a cattle rancher told me one time, he said, Sam, you cannot make cows gain weight by weighing them. We aren't going to test kids into excellence. So, you know, do we really need to test every child all the time? Can we look at sampling? Can we look at models like NAEP and PISA and others that are considered to be very fine examples of measuring school and performance of groups? And if we're going to test every child all the time, the commission said, then give us some evidence from that test that helps us inform instruction rather than giving it to us well after the fact and opportunity to inform instruction in the classroom. Grant Wiggins used to talk about testing as we have it today as more or less a snapshot. A moment in time, and he said, and then we give them the data from the test well into the future, he said, it would kind of be like playing a basketball game with a curtain in front of the basket, and you would shoot over the curtain, and 6 months later somebody would tell you if you won the game or not. So, there are just a lot of little things like that that have finally and hopefully your work will address and I wish you well.
