OUR STORIES | pst-voice

A great way to get our message across is through our personal stories! Allowing others to see what we have experienced speaks volumes and gives us a strong voice. We believe your story is important and would love for you to share it!

Email your story to: minnesotavoice@gmail.com

Our Stories

Pre-Service Teachers,

Kayla's Story:

Ever since I was a little girl, I have dreamed of becoming a teacher. I used to dress my little brother up as a student and play school for hours. I invested my time in creating lesson plans and reading several books. As I grew older, this joy only continued to develop. I found myself volunteering in schools through National Honor Society and babysitting for several families. By the time my sophomore year of high school came around, I knew exactly what I wanted to study. I had been on the A Honor Roll every semester since sixth grade and I knew that in order to achieve my goal; I needed to continue that momentum.

My junior year of high school, I took two college courses through the U of M and MSU-Mankato…still maintaining my A Honor Roll. By the time my senior year of high school came around, I was fully enrolled as a PSEO student taking college courses at Normandale Community College, full time. By the time I graduated high school, I had successfully earned forty-two college credits, all with a grade no lower than an A-. When the time came for me to transfer to MSUM-Moorhead, I was ecstatic to move to Fargo and start a new adventure. For the first time, I would be taking courses specific to my major and I would be one step closer to achieving the biggest dream of my professional life! The more I found out, the more excited I became. My first semester at MSUM, I took eighteen credits and received a 3.94 GPA, all while maintaining a job at a daycare in Fargo. Any student would be proud to have such high credentials, yet I still feel like a failure. Why might you ask? The answer is the MTLE tests.

I took all three tests on the same day my first time and was happy to find that I passed the Math and the Writing, however, I was shocked to have failed the reading. After some more time studying, I enrolled to retake the reading and once again I was unsuccessful. Failing it the second time broke me and made me have doubts about myself so after five months of studying alongside my college courses, I enrolled to take it again. Even after three times and several hours of studying, I was unsuccessful. I walked away shattered and feeling like a failure but soon learned that I was not the only one suffering with this test. Several of my fellow classmates at MSUM and other Minnesota colleges have continued to fail at least one of the three portions several times. I have even heard of students that are able to pass their content and pedagogy tests but not the basic skills.

I agree that basic skills are absolutely necessary for teachers to have prior to teaching in the classroom. I believe that we should be offering the future of America the most qualified teachers we can find, however, I am concerned that the basic skills is turning away people that are more than qualified to teach. These individuals have the skills, the GPA, and the love for teaching but not the ability to pass one test. I worry that the test is not measuring what it is supposed to measure. It’s difficult for me to see why so many have continued to fail knowing how well they do in school and how hard they are trying.

We are told that teachers must advocate for their students, that it is their job to do so. As the old saying goes, we must love ourselves before we can love another….we must advocate for ourselves so that we may strive to advocate for our future students. If we do not make our concerns heard, there may be several students who miss out on the opportunity to have amazing teachers simply because of a basic skills test. I am scared that I have spent three years of my life and thousands of dollars on a degree that will remain unfinished because of a test.

Kristen's Story:

My story goes all the way back to grade school. I was sitting in my chair with sweating palms, shaky hands, and pounding heart. I was taking my first official state test. I believe it was called the “Iowa Basics”. My teacher reminded all of us to do our very best, and not to worry. Well, I still worried. I wanted to do well on the test and show the state of Minnesota that I was the smartest kid in class. A couple months passed and my results from the test came back. After my parents opened the envelope, it was only the beginning of realizing that standardized tests and tests from school reflected poorly on my learning performance.

Since grade school, I have performed poorly on tests. My teachers were concerned about the results from the tests, but they would always tell my parents that “Kristen demonstrates her knowledge through one-on-one interaction, class discussions, and her homework.” They felt that I was not a good test taker. My excellence in the classroom helped me receive awards such as the “The Minnesota All-Stars”, student of the week, President Excellence Awards, and honor roll. Also, I was able to attend college as a senior in high school through the Post-Secondary Education Option (PSEO). I was always a hard working student and received excellent grades, but the only thing that was holding me back were tests. I kept performing poorly on regular class tests, state tests, and my ACT. I was embarrassed when I received my results from the ACT. I was so worried that I was unable to go to college because colleges weighed so much on ACT scores. My parents told me though that I had an outstanding GPA and if I put my mind into anything, I could succeed. So, I applied to colleges and got accepted to a few. I chose one and started college after I graduated from high school.

I was attending college for about three years and needed to apply for the teacher’s program. Unfortunately, there was something standing in my way, the Minnesota Teacher Licensure Exam (MTLE). The advisor was telling me that I needed to pass the basics skills and complete my prerequisites before entering the teacher program. I completed my prerequisites and had a cumulative GPA of 3.46. I knew I was able to pass this MTLE. I got there and I was nervous. I felt like every other time; sweaty palms, shaky hands, and pounding heart. I was actually sweating pretty profusely. Before I took my test, the lady checking me in asked if I was okay. I said yes. I just get nervous for tests. She giggled and said that she could tell. I felt like it was not funny, but it helped me relax a little. I took my exam and I felt like I did pretty well on it, but then again I always feel like I do....then I fail. I got my results a couple months later and received NOT-PASSED. That was all. No feed back or suggestions in areas to improve on. I was disappointed, but my parents told me “Just take it again, you’ll pass the second time. So, I kept retaking the test and I was still failing.

I have taken the writing portion (three times), math portion (three times), and reading portion (five times). So, you can imagine how much money I have spent on this exam. When you register for the MTLE, you have to pay an annual fee just to register which costs $50, and each subtest cost $25. I’ve been taking this test the last three years which has cost me $150.00 and the subtests have cost me $275.00 which is a total of $425.00. I’m a poor college student and I couldn’t believe that I have been paying Pearson this much money.

There are a couple of things that I am concerned about with the MTLE:

· There is not enough time to finish the exam

· There are no accommodations for students with test anxiety

· The cost is too much

· Very little preparation (study guides)

· No feedback for individual improvements

· Takes too long to receive your results

I am not asking to throw the test out. I understand that we live in a society that is based on excellence and accountability testing. I am just asking people to re-evaluate the exam and make the MTLE fair. If I am paying $425.00, I feel like I should get more time to finish my exam, accommodate my testing anxiety, supply study guides (not a one-time sample test), receive feedback on areas that need improvement, and get results the day of the exam in a timely manner (I understand we can’t do that with the writing portion). I feel like these are simple requests. I understand that the state of Minnesota wants highly qualified teachers. I agree with this. However, we shouldn’t just base this off the MTLE. We should look at the whole teacher, their performance through college, their interactions with students and also their passion. I’ve been working in several school districts and the teachers comment that “I have a gift with students.” I would be really sad if I do not have an opportunity to teach children because of a test.

I believe that everything happens for a reason. I transferred to a new college after my appeal was denied three times to the teaching department. I am currently attending Moorhead State University and met a special person who shares the same concerns as I do. Kayla Vandenheuvel and I want to voice our concerns to the legislature and stop a bill that requires students to pass their MTLE before getting into their teacher program. Please help and support our cause.