If you answered yes, click on this website that is fighting the testing madness in the schools.
Share your stories, and you can even order a bumper sticker.
Encourage other teachers and parents to let the world know they their children are tested to despair.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
OK , trying to figure out if there is any purpose whatsoever for these tests? Is there one way it helps the student? Do they really matter???? It’s scares me that as a whole we are having our kids take these for no real value to them . Like Jack Nicholson in The Shining writing his “book”. What a waste of young minds, time, and money.
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I am new to your blog and am finding it very informative and enlighening! I am a middle school math teacher and am in a district that is ALL about test scores. Our students are tested MANY times during the year, and EVERYTHING revolves around the numerous data sets associated with those tests. Online benchmarks for state testing (3), district benchmarks, pilot constructed response assessments (4 of those), writing assessments (3 or 4, not sure), state tests, the list goes on..
My question is this,,, how does one ‘fight’ that when I HAVE to have a job and live in an area where choices are limited. I love my school and love the area where I live. I am a good teacher with 13+ years of experience, but I also see the disturbing harm all this testing, and tunnel-vision focus, is doing to the long-term educational trajectory of my students. I work with very good, experienced teachers who want to bail out because they feel, as I do, that we aren’t really teachers any more. Rather, we are more like computer programmers, programming our students to make the district look good. We end up with students who are ‘programmed’ for testing, not educated and informed.
Frustration mounts….. daily.
PS – Do you ever sleep?? 🙂
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It is only a waste of money if the money is flowing away rather than towards you. The real purpose of these tests is as a tool to enrich profitizers of education.
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I do want to share a story about a buddy and colleague of mine. But I tell it briefly in few words and a lot of imagery. See http://thetruthoneducationreform.blogspot.com/2013/02/what-kind-of-father-will-you-be.html
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Diane and Others,
You’re INCREDIBLE for facilitating and participating in the usual online activism and digital civic participation. Thank you!
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Cry, Baby, Cry. I read the Ravitch blog because it keeps me thinking, hearing what others have to say about education. As a 73-year old math teacher who has done may things in my life, I cannot believe how many people want to play the blame game, point fingers at all those around them. In Minneapolis we graduate 49% of the students at a cost of $23,000 per student per year.
Ravitch and Company talk about profiteers, destroying public education, sympathize with each other like a group of clucking hens. Do not forget, the classroom teacher is the only one who has true contact with those learning. If I cannot speak to the results in my classroom and be responsible for outcomes then I must quite.
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I’m not sure if you’re still in the classroom, but currently, classroom teachers have very little say in what and how they teach. Everything is becoming scripted. There is a very narrow focus on certain (tested) skill sets. Billions of dollars are being spent on testing. So, to say it is the teacher’s fault is akin to saying it’s the investor’s fault for the Wall Street debacle.
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Open the link, post a comment and order a bumper sticker. Imagine if every dissatisfied teacher and parent had one.
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Yes, I did and it’s in the mail already.
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I am so anti-bumper sticker, but I am comfortable in making an exception. We are a “car” nation, so we might as well use the cultural pulses to get our message out there. If I see any other great bumper stidkers out there, I’ll write in. If anyone knows of a custom bumper sticker company or specialized paper for your printer that can be used for bumper sticking, let me know. I have plenty of pithy messages to get out.
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bumper stickers: cafepress or zazzle, and maybe vistaprint(?)
and DV: The ‘outcomes’ teachers are responsible for are test scores! I am evaluated primarily on student outcomes and, in our state, outcomes = test scores.
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So you are not required to adminster standardized tests and benchmark testing as well as frequent assessments to prove your students are progressing to meet the yearly state assessments as designed by non educators?
You are free to teach concepts and mastery without state and federal interference?
If so, where do you teach?
While you hear clucking, we see the funneling of money away from children, teaching and learning.
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Here is a copy of the email I just sent to my seventh graders school district:
Dear _________________,
I do not want my child, __________, to take the ELA and Math state tests this spring. I have not come to this decision lightly. In fact, I have conducted a great deal of research and have come to the conclusion that high stakes testing does nothing to benefit our public schools; but it has everything to do with lining the pockets of private corporations who are, unfortunately, driving our current educational policy. In attempting to come to a decision, I have tried to reach out to the _______________in order to have a dialog about the implications of ______ not taking the tests, but have received no communication – despite emailing and having left several phone messages.
The tests do not benefit my child. The scores are not used for college admissions or to improve classroom practice. Critical thinking is being replace by rote test prep. New York State’s politicians have doubled down on unproven testing mandates in accepting Race to the Top funding. Common Core (and the additional testing it advocates) is an experiment on our children. Political coffers are being lined at the expense of our students.
I understand that the district is mandated to collect such test data. However, I would prefer that my son be engaged in learning activities during testing times. I am discussing my decision with my son, and would like to work together with you to develop a plan for him during testing times that will work for everyone.
Thank you for considering our request. We appreciate the positive and rich learning environment that you help create and support at ____________.
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Your answer, RL, is exactly what I rail against. You cry and moan because you think many are conspiring against you. These profiteers and corporate raiders you blame are doing nothing different than what you build your world around. Ravitch wants you to follow her flame-throwing. It’s how she gets paid, the handsome fees she receives from the teachers unions to keep the dust in the air. Cry, Baby, Cry.
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Are you high? What fees are you talking about? Your accusations are baseless and if we cry, YOU LIE.
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Dick,
Are YOU a teacher? Based on your reply to R.L., you must not be. These tests have DESTROYED education in America. I am a certified History/Social Studies teacher in Hartford, CT. We are prevented from teaching course content because of the irrational importance placed upon these tests and the time they take by our district and state leaders.
Come and visit one of our classrooms sometime. Every course can now be called “High-Stakes Testing 101”.
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Hi, Linda. I am a Curriculum Writer, have taught in every Mpls high school and have 14 grandchildren. As a parent and teacher I am not proud of the poor performance kids are exhibiting and I will not stand cry and blame others for what I am doing or not doing.
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What a simplistic view……one sold by the privatizers…sorry you have bought it hook, line and sinker.
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Mr. Veiner, I would encourage you urgently to start your own school, make your own rules, admit whatever kind of vetted students you want, teach the way you want, control the class size you want, pay the teachers what you want, extend a dignified benefits package the way you want, and certainly, Mr. Veiner, of all things, reduce and prevent child poverty the way you want. I think you’d be an interesting person to watch as you’re doing all those things.
In fact, your insights are so easy on the surface to understand, I say we have a Dick Veiner pride parade, with Mr. insightful Veiner himself as the grand marshall.
What do you say, Mr. Veiner? Are you in?
Please let us all know how you make out if you decide to start your own school. Mayber there’s something you can teach us. I used to write test items for a New York State standardized test for immigrant children whose English was not proficient. It was an eye opener.
Until then, I think there’s productivity and hope in the Ravitch camp. You’ll find me there. But do let all of us know how you make out if you decide to found the school or lead the ticker tape. . . .
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Dick,
What poor performance? If you have ever taken a doctoral-level Research Design and Methods course (I have taken several), you know that standardized testing scores cannot be applied to that which is taught in the classroom and learned by students because of the literally thousands of independent variables that cannot be factored out in each group of students. These scores do not measure any specific curriculum because every district in the United States has its own. One standardized test, given to every student in a given grade in any given state does not reflect any one curriculum, let alone all of them. They do not deal with cultural differences between ethnic and socioeconomic groups. They are given to each group of students only once; therefore no student growth or lack of growth can possibly be reflected in these scores. The current crop of so-called reformers have used these scores inappropriately to show a trend of school failure. Even the SAT states in its opening comments that the SAT does not measure what a student has learned in high school!
My district has spent millions of dollars on standardized testing just this year alone. Yet, I am stuck with only one classroom set of old text books with which to teach content because there is no money available with which to purchase new books.
Dick, my district WASTES an entire quarter of the academic year just in testing. Please explain how that can possibly help educate our students?
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When was the US a top nation in education. May I suggest we go back to the future and look at what worked and go from there? This reform movement needs revision.
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On the international tests: we were never no. 1. 50 years ago, we were dead last in first intl test.
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Way ahead of you, Robert. It’s called the Russian School of Mathematics. An IB language immersion program where I do not tolerate cry babies and excuse givers who are afraid of a little work. Robert, I couldn’t teach you anything because you are the kind who has his mind made-up, no matter how wrong you are.
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Pot calling kettle….hello!
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Good heavens, sir. Name calling does nothing to help anyone. You may have your opinion. I may have mine. The others may have theirs’. But just because someone else has an opinion or experience different from your’s does NOT make them wrong or awful. Please have an open mind here and leave the name calling to the politicians and profiteers. Teachers are called enough names by the politicians and profiteers to last a lifetime. If you really ARE a teacher, fellow teachers do not need name calling from one of their own.
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When the Chinese hackers get into the national test database, then we’re really in trouble. Lots of valuble data there. Hey, I need some Starbucks money, anyone want to buy my old 4th grade report card for five bucks?
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Haha! You made me laugh…too funny! Can we release the report cards of our elected officials. That would be a hoot!
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That’s a great idea!! Our state legislature would never go for that as most of them never graduated from college (documented in news reports). Also, a huge number have not darkened the door of a classroom since they, themselves, were students. When is the last time one of them visited your classroom? My answer is NEVER in my 13+ years.
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Let’s not be too harsh on most of our elected officials. I would give most of them an F+. An F or F- might discourage them from rethnking their uninformed positions and trying to ascertain what it really takes to be an effective teacher . . . .
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