Pencils Down: Unearthing the Storied Truths of "Read or Fail" Testing

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session Nine
  In Roundtable Session: Dominant School Narratives, Storied Truths, and Capturing the Spark (Table 12)

Abstract

Abstract
Recent years have seen an increased reliance on high-stakes testing in the United States (American Evaluation Association, 2021) however, few studies have examined how individual students perceive and are affected by mandated high-stakes reading assessments across their schooling years. Drawing on a narrative approach across multiple years, this paper illuminates the stories of a now graduating high school student who failed such a test in the third grade. Initial findings indicate that the student’s failure of the test and the messages she perceived have marked her identity as a reader and a student long past the third grade. Implications for educators, administrators, and policymakers are discussed.

Authors

• Jill A Scott, Indiana University
  Presenting Author

• Summer Davis, Western Michigan University
  Presenting Author