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Archives for the month of: April, 2015
The Pearson server crashed in Colorado as tens of thousands of students were taking online assessments in science and social studies.
It was not what you would call an opt out, but it had the same effect. The Brave Néw World of online assessment is not quite ready for prime time.
Here is an excellent analysis of what is behind the Opt Out movement. Last year, 50,000-60,000 students opted out in Néw York. The figure will be more than double that this year.
Parents are reacting against the overuse and misuse of tests. They are reacting against Governor Cuomo’s harsh and punitive education legislation.
In a democratic society, parents can’t be pushed around by public officials who are more interested in politics than in children. It makes parents angry.
My favorite quote:
“The most dangerous place on Earth is between a mother and her child. Cuomo has crossed the line,” declares GiGi Guiliano of East Islip, a mother of three who will refuse the test. “We want our classrooms back. We want our teachers to be able to teach again. I want my kids to enjoy the love of learning, not how to fill in bubbles. I want them to be lifelong learners.”
A letter from a teacher:
“Two of the students that I tutor called me up to give me feedback about the tests. One student is an honors student in the 6th grade in a middle school. He is a high achiever from a professional family. He was so upset that his voice was breaking up on the phone. He described a poem that he did not comprehend at all. He stated that the vocabulary was so difficult and that he never encountered most of the words that were used in this poem.
I asked if at the bottom of the poem some of the meanings were footnoted. He said no.
He then said that at the end of the assessment, his English teacher looked at the poem and said to the class that she did not really understand the poem herself . In addition, there was another nonfiction passage that he had to read twice to get any meaning from. As a result, he was unable to complete all the questions for this passage by the end of the assessment.
My second student is a 8th grade student who goes to a middle school in Queens. He has second language issues that have caused many gaps in his vocabulary. He said that he had to read many of the passages twice and could not finish the test. He said that the passages on the assessment were harder than the passages I gave to him. The readability of the practice passages I gave to him were mostly on the 10th grade level. Most of the material I used came from two well known publishers. Both these publishers claimed that their material supposedly mimic the difficulty level of the assessment. I guess not.
More important is the fact that this is a boy whose parents have very high expectations which have caused him to have issues in self-concept. After this assessment, his self-concept is in the garbage. His parents were always opposed to opting out because of their cultural background. His mother came on the phone and is now considering opting her son out from the rest of the assessment.
What I am hearing is nothing less than criminal. Forget about the fact that it appears that these passages and questions are so hard that teachers cannot comprehend them. Also forget about how these tests are being used against us teachers.
It is more important that these assessments represent, in my mind, child abuse. What is the purpose of destroying children that try so hard. Both of these students are boys who want to please their parents. their teachers and me. They now feel like failures. No child should ever be made to feel this way. I even feel like a failure because I worked so hard with these two boys. At least I understand that it is not me. It is the tests. There is no doubt that the purpose of these tests is to create failure. They were never intended to measure learning.
This a bizarre but true story, told by veteran education reporter Bob Braun about the superintendent of a Néw Jersey school district.
The superintendent, in a display of machismo, wrote a letter to his staff including this hope:
““I desperately hope my children are bullied at least once a year through their K-12 experience….”
“He begins his note by conceding the PARCC tests are difficult—“not for the faint of heart” he says, not terribly originally. But, so what?
“What’s wrong with hard? What’s wrong with some failure? Is adversity to be scrubbed from the adolescent experience altogether?”
Read the whole story. Do you want your children to be bullied at least once a year? Why not daily? That would toughen them up.
A letter was circulated to all principals in the Rochester, New York, school system, advising them to identify teachers who had encouraged parents or students to opt out and to report teachers who were absent on testing day.
Adam Urbanski, the president of the Rochester Teachers Association, sent the following letter to his members:
Colleagues,
The attached email was sent to school principals by Beverly Burrell-Moore. Understandably, teachers find the tone and content of that email to be a blatant attempt at intimidation and an infringement on teachers’ rights and academic freedom. I have immediately brought this to the attention of Superintendent Vargas who said that he was unaware of the email but would communicate his position to teachers directly later today.
As well they should, teachers feel a moral obligation to speak up when they witness harm being done to their students. The tests being now imposed on students are educational malpractice and should be objectionable to teachers, parents and all others who care about students. I applaud all parents who choose to refuse to subject their children to these meaningless and bad tests and commend teachers who insist on their right to respond to inquiries from parents and students.
Today we have filed a Class Action Grievance against the District for already taking disciplinary action against individual teachers. Please let us know if you or your colleagues suffer any reprisals as a result of speaking out against these tests. We will continue to defend the rights of teachers to speak out against harmful educational practices and to advocate for the best interest of their students.
Adam Urbanski, RTA President
It gets harder and harder to keep up with the news about testing, because the popular sentiment is changing against standardized testing in general and Common Core testing in particular with great rapidity. Even this list is slightly dated. As I reported earlier today, some of the Atlanta educators convicted of racketeering were given stiff prison sentences.
It is an extraordinary coincidence that the Senate revision of NCLB is occurring at the same time as the biggest test refusal in American history. The parents who are opting out are sending a message to Congress at the same time that Congress plans to renew annual testing for another seven years. Will Congress hear the message? Or will the opt out movement grow even stronger next year? And will there be more Teachers of Conscience who refuse to give the tests?
Fairtest reports in its weekly update on testing resistance and reform:
Today is huge for assessment reform with the U.S. Senate education committee starting markup of legislation to overhaul “No Child Left Behind,” tens of thousands of students planning to opt-out of the first day of standardized exams in New York State, and sentencing scheduled in the Atlanta cheating case that has focused attention on damage from the fixation on test scores.
Here’s a sampling of just one week’s news from across the nation. Please continue sending us your clips and let us know if FairTest can help your local campaigns in any way
U.S. Senate Rewrite of “No Child Left Behind” Does Not Go Far Enough
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/04/10/why-the-senates-proposed-no-child-left-behind-rewrite-doesnt-go-far-enough/
Congress Many Years Behind in Move to Overhaul NCLB
http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2015/04/13/398804901/senators-try-to-revise-no-child-left-behind-a-few-years-behind
Is It a “Civil Right” to Take Federally Mandated Tests?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/is-it-a-students-civil-right-to-take-a-federally-mandated-standardized-test/2015/04/10/7f1b731c-d3e4-11e4-a62f-ee745911a4ff_story.html
California Parents Can Choose to Opt Out of Common Core Tests
http://www.kionrightnow.com/news/local-news/some-parents-choose-to-opt-out-of-states-common-core-testing/32242858
Colorado Senate Overwhelmingly Approves Opt-Out Bill
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_27867251/colorado-testing-opt-out-bill-wins-final-senate
Colorado Moms Take Frustration About Standardized Testing to State Capital
http://kdvr.com/2015/04/09/moms-students-take-frustration-over-standardized-testing-to-capitol/
Connecticut Opt Out Policies Vary Among Districts
http://www.courant.com/education/hc-for-students-who-opt-out-of-sbac-some-allowed-to-leave-testing-area-others-not-20150407-story.html
Florida Legislature Sends Governor Bill to Scale Back Testing
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/education/os-florida-house-passes-testing-bill-post.html
Florida Congresswoman Calls on State to Ignore Results of This Year’s Tests
http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/us-rep-wilson-urges-florida-lawmakers-to-disregard-test-results/2224816
Georgia Debates “Fair’ Punishment for Atlanta Educators in Testing Scandal
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/crime-law/whats-fair-punishment-for-aps-cheaters-depends-on-/nkqsR/#6ba5566b.149964.735700
Atlanta Cheating Scandal Exposes Everything Wrong with Test-Driven Education
http://www.alternet.org/education/latest-big-city-school-testing-scandal-exposes-everything-thats-wrong-standardized
Louisiana Teachers Should Be Inspiring Students, Not Just Preparing Them for Tests
http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/opinion/11990159-123/letter-teachers-should-be-inspiring
Maine Students Opt Out of New Standardized Test
http://www.penbaypilot.com/article/camden-hills-parents-overwhelmingly-say-no-new-assessment-test/50881
Michigan PTA Calls for Suspension of New State Assessment
http://www.theoaklandpress.com/general-news/20150409/parent-leaders-ask-state-to-put-m-step-assessments-on-hold-for-this-year
Michigan Parents Pulling Kids Out of State Tests
http://www.minbcnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=1190733#.VSxM40ZLUZw
Nebraska Presses Own Model in “No Child” Overhaul Debate
http://journalstar.com/news/local/education/finally-some-movement-on-nclb-with-nebraska-in-the-discussion/article_3aaf1141-5a12-5f87-b85b-6d0b354e8ce5.html
New Hampshire SmarterBalanced Testing Is Unethical, Invalid
http://www.fosters.com/article/20150407/NEWS/150409532/-1/ROCNEWS
New Jersey PARCC Is Part of State’s Education Problems, Not a Solution
http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/15/04/07/opinion-parcc-is-part-of-the-problem-not-part-of-the-answer-for-nj-schools/
New Mexico School Counselors Speak Out Against School Testing Overkill
http://www.taosnews.com/news/article_ece6d7a8-def0-11e4-997b-d70a26278f16.html
New Mexico Opt-Out Numbers Grow
http://www.koat.com/news/parcc-opt-out-numbers-for-aps-announced/32345118
New York Opt Out Movement Grows Rapidly
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2015/04/opt-out_movement_grows_across_state_thousands_of_students_expected_to_refuse_tes.html
Western New York District Opt-Out Rate Tops 56%
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2015/04/10/fairport-opt-cala/25575961/
New York Teacher Licensing Test on Trial for Racial Bias, Lack of Relationship to Job
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/08/nyregion/questions-of-bias-are-raised-about-a-teachers-exam-in-new-york.html?ref=education
North Carolina Test-Based School Grades Get an “F”
http://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/op-ed/article18438515.html
North Dakota Legislatures Can’t Reach Agreement on Opt-Out Bill as Grassroots Movement Grows
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/local/bismarck/testing-opt-out-bill-dies-in-house/article_d74b3f4d-de9c-503c-b56c-0c02cc9fe41e.html
Ohio Governor Signs Bill Protecting Students From Negative Consequences of New PARCC Test Scores
http://www.timesreporter.com/article/20150409/OPINION/150409376/2011/OPINION
Ohio Educators Give Law Marks to Rollout of New State Tests
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/04/ohio_educators_give_bad_marks.html
Oregon Students Lead Movement Against New Tests
http://portlandtribune.com/lor/48-news/256291-126869-students-board-square-off-over-smarter-balanced-assessment-tests
Oregon Opt-Out Gains Steam, Especially in Portland
http://www.oregonlive.com/education/index.ssf/2015/04/portland_common_core_testing_o.html
Pennsylvania Suburbs See Twenty-Fold Increase in Opt-Out Requests
http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/homepage-feature/item/80602-main-line-district-sits-for-pssas-with-20x-increase-in-opt-outs
Pennsylvania Should Not Waste Time With Keystone Exams
http://www.delcotimes.com/opinion/20150408/letter-to-the-editor-dont-waste-time-with-the-keystone-exam
Tennessee Dueling Test Standards Put Squeeze on Teachers and Students
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/04/09/dueling-tests-standards-put-squeeze-on-tennessee.html
Texas Concedes New Math Test Scores Will Not Count in School, District Ratings
http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local-education/math-staar-tests-for-grades-3-8-wont-count-in-camp/nkp2j/
Texas Lawmaker Takes Aim at STAAR Testing
http://www.houstonchronicle.com/neighborhood/katy/schools/article/Fort-Bend-lawmaker-takes-aim-at-STAAR-testing-6184831.php
Washington State NAACP Joins Critics of New Tests
http://kuow.org/post/naacp-joins-fight-against-new-standardized-test
Washington High School Students Boycotting Smarter Balanced Test
http://www.thestranger.com/blogs/slog/2015/04/10/22029704/why-roughly-220-garfield-high-school-students-are-boycotting-a-standardized-test-in-their-own-words
Congratulations, Pearson Offered Me a Test-Scoring Position
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/04/14/congratulations-to-me-i-have-been-offered-a-position-as-a-professional-scorer-by-pearson/
Bob Schaeffer, Public Education Director
FairTest: National Center for Fair & Open Testing
office- (239) 395-6773 fax- (239) 395-6779
mobile- (239) 699-0468
web- http://www.fairtest.org
A recent poll reported in the Los Angeles Times produced interesting results and a divide between Latino and white voters.
Latino voters support standardized tests, while most white oppose them.
Both groups support public schools (as compared to privately managed schools), but Latino voters support them by larger margins.
A majority of Latino voters, 55%, said mandatory exams improve public education in the state by gauging student progress and providing teachers with vital information. Nearly the same percentage of white voters said such exams are harmful because they force educators to narrow instruction and don’t account for different styles of learning.
None of the voters know that the new Common Core exams provide no information about how a student is progressing other than a score; they offer no diagnostic information whatever so there is nothing that a teacher or parent learns other than how many answers they got right compared to others in the same grade.
Voters were critical of tenure, assuming it means a lifetime job, with whites more critical than Latino and black voters.
Latino and black voters believe that more money should be put into schools in poor neighborhoods to improve them:
Nearly half of voters surveyed said publicly funded, independently run charter schools offer a higher-quality education than traditional public schools. Still, a majority of white voters, 56%, believe the state should invest in improving existing schools instead of spending additional money to create more charters. Minority voters held on to that belief more strongly, with support between 67% and 69%.
Eight out of 10 black and Latino voters said putting more money into schools in economically or socially disadvantaged areas would improve the quality of public education somewhat or a lot, compared with 68% of white voters.
The article includes an interview with Dan Schnur of the University of Southern California, brother of Jon Schnur, the architect of Race to the Top. USC conducted the poll.
Judge Jerry W. Baxter, who presided over the trial of Atlanta educators who cheated on tests and were convicted of racketeering, briefly reconsidered the sentences he would mete out.
While it appeared that he might not send the disgraced educators to jail, his sentences were indeed harsh. Some of them will spend seven years in jail.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s investigative journalism is credited with first examining the corruption within the city’s public school system. On Tuesday, the newspaper published photos of each of those who took plea deals and the sentences they received.
* Donald Bullock was first. Witnesses testified that Bullock urged them to change test answers, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported. The former testing coordinator was ordered to serve five years probation, six months of weekends behind bars, pay a $5,000 fine and perform 1,500 hours of community service. As part of his deal, Bullock agreed to waive his right to appeal.
* Angela Williamson, a former teacher, was ordered to serve two years in prison. She was ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and perform 1,500 hours of community service.
* Pamela Cleveland, a former teacher, was ordered to serve one year home confinement, pay a $1,000 fine and perform 1,000 hours of community service. “I am guilty of the charges against me,” Cleveland said in court.
* Michael Pitts, a former schools executive, was accused of telling teachers to cheat and then telling them not to talk to Georgia Bureau of Investigators who were looking into the scandal. He was ordered to serve seven years in prison, perform 2,000 hours of community service and pay a $25,000 fine.
* Tamara Cotman, a former schools administrator, was ordered to serve seven years in prison, pay a $25,000 fine and perform 2000 hours of community service.
* Dana Evans, a former principal, was ordered to serve one year and perform 1,000 hours of community service.
*Tabeeka Jordan, former assistant principal, was ordered to serve two years in prison, perform 1,500 hours of community service and pay $5,000 fine
* Theresia Copeland, a former test coordinator, was ordered to serve one year in prison, perform 1,000 hours of community service and pay a $1,000 fine.
* Diane Buckner-Webb, a former teacher, was ordered to serve one year in prison, perform 1,000 hours of community service and pay a $1,000 fine.
In addition, all of the convicted educators lost their license, their pensions, and five years of compensation.
If only all those bankers who nearly destroyed the economy in 2008 had been dealt with as harshly. But they were “too big to fail.”
Mercedes Schneider has been reading the Senate bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (also known as No Child Left Behind). She has been reading it line by line. This is the fourth of five installments.
Mercedes finds that the statutory language is extremely supportive of “public” charter schools, which are public when they want the money but not “public” when it is time for an audit or accountability. The bill makes a few suggestions of reform, but none is strong enough to rein in the scandals that clutter the charter industry. If anything, the embrace of privately managed charters by Democrats shows the party’s abandonment of public education. We expect Republicans to advocate for school choice, but now Democrats are on the same side.
Diane Ravitch's blog 