Reflecting on her experience at Georgetown High School, Clara speaks highly of being in GISD. “I’m lucky to be at a big school. We have so many good opportunities here; whether you choose welding, cosmetology, fine arts, or sports, students are empowered and able to flourish if they choose.” The diversity of opportunity was not lost on Clara when she auditioned and was cast in the school musical, but realized the time commitment would be too much for her schedule. She then tried out for theater tech and was delighted with the work and new skills she learned. “I know I can try anything because I have the support of my teachers when I make choices; it’s ‘college lite.’”
As many people in Georgetown are talking about standardized test scores, Clara has a more personal connection. “I believe testing is a reasonable way to identify deviations out of hundreds or thousands of students, but it’s not the best way; it’s not really an indication of intelligence or empirical accountability.” This is true, she says, particularly because students like her are exempt from taking the STAAR test if they score very high on the PSAT. To avoid gaps in test data, exempt students are given a passing score of 70 on the STAAR test, and it is not unreasonable to assume they would have scored substantially higher. The 70 score artificially lowers the overall rating for the school.
“The system is frustrating,” she says, “But I understand why we take the STAAR test. What people don’t realize is how stressful it is on the kids who have to take it. We have 45 minutes of testing, during which the whole school environment is extremely rigid and not very conducive to normal focus. As well, taking the test on a bad day may determine the course of your high school or college career. We can re-take the PSAT or SAT to get a better score, but we only get one chance with the STAAR.”
Clara believes the testing is helpful but schools need a better, more universal way to measure how kids are doing. “I might suggest teaching students how to take a test rather than only focusing on the memorizing. I’m a high-performing student but not every student loves school, or has the self-sufficiency that keeps them from getting left behind. Testing doesn’t address that in any measure.”
She smiles and shares that her brother, who did not share her passion for academia, discovered welding at GHS, is getting an Associate’s Degree in the trade, and will be making a lot more money than she in a very short time. “Teaching to the test keeps the scores high, but are we really doing students the service they need?” Clara mentioned friends who were able to try new things in high school and discovered what wasn’t a good fit before they spent time, effort, and money for the same pursuit in college. “We are able to learn from mistakes before they have real-world consequences.
“I don’t think standardized testing is the best or the only way to go, but we can’t ignore the fact that we are supposed to do well on it. I feel we can do both, or adapt the test to apply to the real world. We don’t want to focus on the test to the exclusion of other things that are important for our social and emotional growth.”
Clara is a junior at GHS. She is also an author, an award-winning artist, and daughter of School Board Member Andy Webb. “Don’t worry,” she says, “I don’t always agree with my dad.”