Common Core Tests

Sixth grade students work through a Common Core State Standards Test at Morgan Elementary School South in Stockport, Ohio. The percentage of Portland students who have opted out of taking the test has risen to 5 percent. (AP Photo/Ty Wright)

(Ty Wright)

The portion of Portland Public Schools students opting out of new Common Core aligned tests has climbed to five percent, according to data released by the district Friday.

As of Wednesday, about 1,200 of the district's approximately 25,000 test-takers have submitted exemption forms.

Districtwide, Portland Public Schools students are opting out at a much higher rate than other metro area districts. As of Friday, the Hillsboro School District has received 48 opt-out requests. Beaverton had 107 on Thursday, and North Clackamas reported 27.

The new Smarter Balanced assessments are being administered for the first time this spring to Oregon students in grades three to eight and 11. The language arts and math tests will measure how well schools are teaching to demanding Common Core State Standards.

Concerns about Common Core tests have been popping across the country and in Oregon. In February, the Portland Association of Teachers passed a formal resolution objecting to the tests, given the cost to implement the assessments and that test results have not yet been proven to be valid or reliable. In Lake Oswego, a student movement against testing has led to a flood of more a 100 exemption requests at Lake Oswego High School.

Elementary students represent the highest percentages of those who have opted out. Out of the total number of exemptions the district has received, 26 percent are for third grade students, 22 percent are for students in grade four and 22 percent are for fifth graders. Of out of all students eligible to test, 6 percent of third, fourth and fifth grade students won't take the assessment.

At individual PPS schools the number of exemptions ranges from a hundred to zero.

At Abernethy Elementary School in Southeast Portland, 127 students, or half of those eligible to take Smarter Balanced tests, have opted out. Just over 30 percent of students at the K-8 Metropolitan Learning Center and K-8 Creative Science School have opted out, marking the next highest percentages for district schools.

(See the full opt out chart below)

Oregon law allows parents to opt their child out of taking the tests due to disability or religious beliefs. According to PPS spokeswoman Christine Miles, parents must turn exemption forms in before the start of testing, which varies at each school. The district does not evaluate the reasons parents give for opting out.

"We can't really question," she said. "We trust that the parents are putting down accurate and truthful information."

Typically, low participation in state tests can lead to consequences for schools.

According to Crystal Greene, Oregon Department of Education spokeswoman, if participation falls below 95 percent for a school or students in particular group, such as English language learners, the school's overall rating will drop by a level. Ratings are based on test scores and student growth, and given on a one-to-five scale.

This year Oregon is expected to get a one year pass on rating schools based on Smarter Balanced, Greene said. It's unknown how or if low participation this year will affect future ratings.

Greene said it can be an issue when schools have low participation rates, as that effects how a school is represented and student's individual feedback.

"It definitely has an impact in terms of the feedback we get on the school," she said. "(Students) wouldn't have that mechanism to gauge how they are doing."

Data from April 3 show that about 4,000 PPS students had completed Smarter Balanced exams. The state's testing window opened March 10.

School # Eligible to test in ELA or Math* # Parental Exemptions % Exempted Total 24,561 1,219 5% Abernethy E.S. 253 127 50% Metropolitan Learning Ctr K-8 266 89 33% Creative Science K-8 284 90 32% Alliance H.S. @ Meek Campus 44 13 30% Sunnyside Environmental K-8 404 106 26% Alliance Combined 51 13 25% Buckman E.S. 225 49 22% DaVinci Arts M.S. 462 83 18% Arleta K-8 279 50 18% Lewis E.S. 196 31 16% Glencoe E.S. 240 32 13% Irvington K-8 334 39 12% Vernon K-8 206 22 11% Opal Charter School 40 4 10% Chief Joseph/Ockley Green K-8 379 35 9% Faubion PK-8 264 20 8% Winterhaven K-8 270 20 7% Roseway Heights K-8 428 31 7% Sabin K-8 278 17 6% Beach PK-8 367 20 5% Sellwood M.S. 537 27 5% Alameda E.S. 386 19 5% Hosford M.S. 588 28 5% Atkinson E.S. 212 10 5% Astor K-8 305 14 5% West Sylvan M.S. 958 39 4% Duniway E.S. 249 10 4% Woodstock E.S. 225 9 4% Mt Tabor M.S. 659 25 4% Lincoln H.S. 396 15 4% Creston K-8 216 8 4% Hayhurst E.S. 110 4 4% Pioneer @ Holladay 28 1 4% Llewellyn E.S. 293 10 3% Marysville K-8 249 8 3% Capitol Hill E.S. 202 6 3% Chapman E.S. 340 10 3% Jefferson H.S. 117 3 3% Stephenson E.S. 159 4 3% Grant H.S. 351 8 2% Access 141 3 2% Rieke E.S. 199 4 2% Beaumont M.S. 572 11 2% Madison H.S. 223 4 2% Bridger K-8 225 4 2% LEP Charter H.S. 61 1 2% Hayhurst/Odyssey Combined 251 4 2% Beverly Cleary K-8 514 8 2% Special Ed Private/Home Schl 65 1 2% Lee K-8 262 4 2% Franklin H.S. 336 5 1% Kelly E.S. 279 4 1% Wilson H.S. 281 4 1% Bridlemile E.S. 217 3 1% Benson Polytechnic H.S. 188 2 1% Richmond E.S. 298 3 1% Trillium Public Charter K-12 212 2 1% Robert Gray M.S. 536 5 1% Rigler E.S. 219 2 1% Vestal K-8 260 2 1% Boise-Eliot/Humboldt PK-8 295 2 1% Maplewood E.S. 154 1 1% Woodmere E.S. 170 1 1% Grout E.S. 182 1 1% James John E.S. 195 1 1% Lane M.S. 458 2 0% Peninsula K-8 248 1 0% Cleveland H.S. 351 1 0% Laurelhurst K-8 439 1 0% Ainsworth E.S. 290 0 0% Alliance H.S. @ Benson Campus 7 0 0% Arthur Academy Charter 85 0 0% Cesar Chavez K-8 268 0 0% Forest Park E.S. 297 0 0% George M.S. 371 0 0% Harrison Park K-8 490 0 0% Odyssey Program K-8 151 0 0% Jackson M.S. 551 0 0% King PK-8 182 0 0% Le Monde French Immersion 32 0 0% Lent K-8 369 0 0% Markham E.S. 167 0 0% Portland Village School 268 0 0% Roosevelt H.S. 229 0 0% Rosa Parks E.S. 174 0 0% Scott K-8 269 0 0% Self Enhancement Inc. 128 0 0% Sitton E.S. 191 0 0% Skyline K-8 201 0 0% The Emerson School 70 0 0% Whitman E.S. 163 0 0% Woodlawn PK-8 229 0 0% *Estimated based on current enrollment. Some special programs are not listed.

--Laura Frazier

lfrazier@oregonian.com

503-294-4035

@frazier_laura