An Indiana lawmaker has proposed having teachers grade the state’s new standardized test as major decisions for the replacement of the current ISTEP exams loom.
Republican state Rep. Robert Behning, who proposed the plan, tells the Indianapolis Star the state would compensate teachers and would make participation optional.
The ISTEP exam is currently graded by the state’s testing vendor, which hires evaluators who don’t have to come from a teaching background.
Behning says involving teachers in scoring would build trust in the test after concerns over the legitimacy of past results.
Marianne Perie, a testing expert with the Center for Assessment and Accountability Research and Design, says the proposal would improve the way content is taught, but that the state could experience slower scoring and less consistency among graders.
