David CookBefore we talk about the startling events out of Gatlinburg, let’s first discuss the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or as it’s loathsomely known to many teachers and students, the TCAP.
(Personally, I’d rather watch paint dry. But this conversation is important. And you’re not going to like it one bit.)
TCAP is among the most important documents in the state. It influences teacher salaries and kids’ final grades. It determines curriculum and what’s taught and what isn’t. And if Nashville has its way, the TCAP could soon help determine which teachers are licensed and which aren’t.
So you’d think — since so many livelihoods are staked to this — that it would be an expert test. Bulletproof. Perfect in every way.
“TCAP is a poor indicator of academic proficiency,” said Dr. Ken Chilton, former director of Ochs Center for Metropolitan Studies.