Parents Across America has gathered documentation of the stress suffered by children due to the overuse and misuse of standardized tests.
“Parents Across America has gathered extensive evidence of an alarming
upsurge in student test-related stress, along with information that
prolonged stress is abusive, actually undermines learning, and may be
harming our most vulnerable children the most.
“PAA has taken the position that we must attack the cause of this problem
— the misuse and overuse of standardized tests — rather than expect
our children to simply deal with test pressure that we never had to
face.
“Position statement:
Click to access Test-Stressposition7-25-15final.pdf
One-page fact sheet: Test Stress and our Children:
Click to access Test-Stress-7-25-15final.pdf
“Documentation paper:
http://parentsacrossamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Test-Stress-Documentation-7-23-15final.pdf”
For more information please contact Julie Woestehoff,
JulieW@parentsacrossamerica.org
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Testing is the achilles heel of the privatization movement. It is the least abstract element of the strategy to undermine public education. Hopefully, it can be entry point for many who were previously on the sidelines to join the fight. Calling mandated excessive testing a “civil right” is among the most absurd tactics in their arsenal.
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Assessment is only as good as the information gathered and it’s application to the education of the child. Having said that, to assess to see who is first and last is useless; To assess and not get information to teachers in a reasonable time frame is useless; To assess by the narrow scope of the test is useless;
Whole child assessment, having children present in many ways what they have learned and demonstrate how they have utilized critical thinking is valuable but must be done at the local level.
Until we realize this and provide this viable alternative to the testing fiasco, all schools will fail. Not because of the quality of school, but because the leaders on high have no concept that kids are not commodities.
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This is smart and long overdue. They should also cite the many examples of high suicide rates in Asian countries such as South Korea. Overemphasis on study and career success has eroded quality time. My exchange students from South Korea tell me they are envious of how much American families spend time together and of how close parents are with their children. Vietnam has openly stated that they regret how testing has compromised the maturity and creativity of their youth. They are searching for a new model. Increased testing will hurt our children spiritually and psychologically. Unless the winds change parents would be wise to sent their children to private school or home school if they are not allowed by their district to OPT OUT.
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I’m still waiting for the American Psychological association to weigh in on this.
Now that they have cleaned out some of the most ethically challenged from their high ranks (on the torture issue), maybe there is a chance that they will see fit to weigh in against the torturous testing of children.
I won’t hold my breath, but one can always hope.
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They’re part of the problem in that they put out the testing bible “Standards of Educational and Psychological Testing” which for all practical purposes exemplifies the “doing the wrong thing righter” approach to the teaching and learning process. See Wilson’s essay review of that “bible”: A Little Less than Valid: An Essay Review
Click to access v10n5.pdf
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For those who want to give Bernie Sanders a chance to win over teachers, his kick-off campaign is Wed. July 29. At the Bernie for President website, we can type in our zip codes and sign up to attend events near us, from 7-9 p.m.
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I just feel bad for Ohio public schools at this point. They put in the huge PARCC system last year which consumed God knows how much time energy and money and now PARCC is out and they’ll have to put an entirely new system in this year.
I really think it’s unfair to students that the adults involved in this at the leadership and policy level were so irresponsible.
All of that silly “disruption” language they borrowed from fad-following dopes in business management circles and boasting about “building planes in the air” just seems reckless to me when we’re talking about millions of children. They couldn’t have out this in one grade at a time? It was absolutely necessary to create chaos in every public school in the state? Schools are where children work. How would the adults in ed reform feel if someone upended their workplace once a year? Would that be “great!” at the US Department of Education or the Walton Foundation or among the university experts at Harvard or Stanford? I bet they value consistency and predictability and order where THEY work.
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“I really think it’s unfair to students that the adults involved in this at the leadership and policy level were so irresponsible. ”
Not “were” but “are”.
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“Hundreds of Ohio educators have already volunteered to help build our new math and ELA tests.”
They’re building another plane in the air after the first one crashed. Why they can’t just build it in a hangar and take it for a test flight before putting millions of children on it remains a mystery 🙂
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Apparently Elia had no clue how all the the Regents exams have been scaled over the decades. Can’t believe it is much different in other states. But some parents need to think more about proper methods and developmental appropriateness than just plain accuracy. Accuracy is meaningless if you don’t even know what you are measuring.
http://www.whec.com/article/stories/s3858879.shtml
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“Accuracy is meaningless if you don’t even know what you are measuring.”
Accuracy is impossible if you don’t even know that what you are “measuring” cannot be logically measured.
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That Elia sounds completely clueless. How do her managers/handlers allow her to speak to the press like that???
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And what could her understanding of VAM and teacher evals possibly be?
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