Parents Across America is hosting a Webinar on high stakes testing. Think about joining and meeting some of the leading figures in the opt-out movement.
Let’s Talk: A Webinar on High Stakes Testing and Opting Out
On January 27 at 1:00 PM PST, 3:00 PM Central and 4:00 PM EST, Parents Across America will be hosting an online seminar on high stakes testing and opting out of these tests.
Our guests will be:
Jesse Hagopian, teacher at Garfield High School and part of the MAP test boycott
Shaun Johnson, a former public school teacher, current teacher educator and online radio show co-host of At the Chalk Face who is a founder of United Opt Out National.
Monty Neill, Executive Director of the National Center for Fair & Open Testing (FairTest). Dr. Neill authored Implementing Performance Assessments: A Guide to Classroom School and System Reform, and Testing Our Children: A Report Card on State Assessment Systems, the first comprehensive evaluation of all 50 state testing programs.
Tim Slekar, a former public school teacher and now an associate professor of teacher education. Dr. Slekar is also co-host of At the Chalk Face and a founder of United Opt Out National.
There will be a discussion on:
How high stakes testing got started.
Methods to fairly evaluate a teacher in the classroom.
Opting your student out of high stakes testing, why and how.
What’s happening in Seattle with the MAP test boycott.
Each guest speaker will have an opportunity to talk about these subjects and then it will be opened up for questions and discussion.
There will be a drawing during the webinar for two copies of Pencils Down: Rethinking High-Stakes Testing and Accountability in Public Schools during this webcast thanks to Rethinking Schools.
To sign up for this free event, go to Eventbrite.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Here is a direct link to register: https://www.eventbrite.com/event/5227423364?ref=ebtnebregn
Thank you! We need the direct link!
Think about joining and meeting some of the leading figures in the opt-out movement.
Is that the opt-out movement where educators encourage parents to opt their kids out from court-mandated accountability measures, or the opt-out movement where parents opt their kids out from public schools that sidestep court-mandated accountability measures?
Both and then some-ha ha!!
Opt-out if for parents choosing to opt their children out of testing. Even as a high school teacher who sent home a letter just today encouraging the parents of my students to ensure their child’s attendance for the state English proficiency exam next week, I opted my own children out of all state and district testing using a template letter from the opt out web site.
The courts cant mandate what parents want for their kids. Are you insinuating anything different?
What court? I thought WA state has their own proficiency tests.
Will the Webinar be recorded so that those who can not attend can watch it later?
Where can I obtain Mr. Neill’s paper/book, please? I’ve looked on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Thank you~
tamicee: Monty Neill’s publications are available here:
http://fairtest.org/resources/publications
FairTest (617) 477-9792
Diane is it alright if I cut and paste this information about the webinars?
Jeff Piontek
Yes, please cut and paste
Forty-Three Roosevelt High School teachers (colleagues in Seattle Public Schools with Garfield High School teachers) signed this Letter of Support (on Jan. 23, 2012) for GHS teachers and a call to for expedient dismissal of the MAP exam because it has not proven to be useful or reliable. (PDF of original with signatures available upon request).
This We Believe:
Teachers, parents, students, school board members and the administration of Seattle Public Schools owe Garfield High School teachers their gratitude and thanks for speaking the truth.
We believe that any reprimand or negative consequences imposed by Seattle Public Schools, the superintendent or administration on the truth-telling teachers of Garfield High School would be unjust. Garfield High School teachers should be given public commendations for rightly raising their professional concerns and specific critique of our district’s choice and misuse of the Measures of Academic Progress® [MAP] testing.
An unspoken truth is that most all Seattle Public School stakeholders already knew that the MAP test was expensive and of little practical use in supporting our students’ learning, or in evaluating their classroom teachers before the Garfield High School teachers spoke up publicly.
We believe that effective teaching and learning must utilize meaningful tests, authentic assessments, and multiple-measures to evaluative what a student knows and can do. These measures are also critical to improve teaching practice, reflect on curriculum, and to evaluate school and district-wide policies. We want students who are struggling and those who have mastered skills and content to be identified and to be offered meaningful support to succeed and excel. We want teachers who are struggling in the classroom to be identified, offered useful critique and professional support. We believe that after due process, if these teachers are unable to meet the high standards we hold ourselves to as educators these individuals should be removed from their teaching positions. We wish to continue to improve our schools which are already rated as one of the best K-12 public school districts in the state and nation. To quote Garfield High School teachers, “The MAP test is not the way to do any of these things.”
We support an expedient dismissal of the MAP exam because it has not proven to be useful or reliable in its given tasks. We ask Superintendent Banda to reconsider his call to wait for a general evaluation of all Seattle Public Schools assessments as that report is not due out until the end of the school year. If MAP testing is already paid for this school year shouldn’t we finish out the school year with the planned MAP testing days? Budgets are in some ways both complex and simple. Seattle Public Schools annual “operating budget” for this year is around $566 million; delivering 180 days of school to our students. Rounding down the cost is still over $3 million-a-day to operate our schools. If we end MAP testing now millions of dollars of this year’s district’s operating budget would be spent on school days of teaching and learning instead of on ineffective MAP-testing.
We believe that process employed by Seattle Public Schools administration, school board, and (initially) by our professional association (SEA) in accepting this testing regime was flawed. We request an administrative and public review of the procedures related to these kinds of important adoptions needs to be established that engages all stakeholders to help prevent unworthy, expensive, MAP-like mistakes in the future.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned Teachers of Roosevelt High School.
Reblogged this on Transparent Christina.
The 01/27 webinar is limited to 100 guests and all spots are currently filled. Perhaps Parents Across America will schedule another event if the interest/demand persists.
I’m sorry, but why would a webinar be limited? Especially to such a low number? Technical issues? I should think that they’d want as many people to view it as possible.
I would be interested in participating if they have another or open more slots.
The webinar will be archived. Please watch http://www.parentsacrossamerica.org for details. The 100 participant limit was a decision based on the much higher cost of adding spaces and PAA’s very limited budget. Now that we have the program, we will be doing more webinars. SO glad that there is so much interest!