The new Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) testing took place Sept. 13 and 20 on campus to give possible bonuses to teachers whose students show growth at the end of the year.
The TIA was put into place by House Bill 3 and will focus on high-need and rural schools. Money earned will not go directly to teachers, but instead to the school to use partially for projects and possible raises. The process lasts three school years so current students above freshman year will not see the impact up close. The English and Social Studies tests took place first with Math and Science following after. Most students on campus took the test as stated by Aaron Ware, the sophomore assistant principal.
“On English tests there are about a thousand students that are doing it,” Ware said. “Everybody is doing it except English 1 and 2. Then for social studies, it is all students on campus. For the math test, it is all students except Algebra 1, and then in the afternoon all Science courses.”
The tests did not alter the normal school schedule. Tests in the morning took place during second and third period, while the ones in the afternoon happened during seventh and eighth period. The second round of testing will take place in April to evaluate the level of growth for all students who participated in the first semester.
“The pre-test allows you to know where you are as of right now and then in Spring when you take a post-test it will measure how much you actually grow and understand the content,” Lucy Gamboa, the senior assistant principal, said. “Schedules will be the same, if a classroom is being used and the students are not testing they will be relocated [to the cafeteria].”
Despite the importance of these tests for teachers, students will not have any drawbacks from doing poorly. This is a trial year for the TIA and will serve to point out problems before full implementation.
“Next year will be our first year to implement this new TIA program for most courses,” Stephanie Trevethan, student council sponsor, and math teacher said. “We are thankful for a year with less pressure on testing to work out unforeseen issues that might arise. Show up willing to do your best on each exam in order to have accurate data, but don’t let testing be a stressor.”
