United Opt Out recently announced that its annual conference will be held in Philadelphia from February 26-28, 2016.
This is the movement that will destroy corporate reform.
Suppose they gave a standardized test and nobody took it. Suppose they gave 25 standardized tests and no one showed up.
No profits for the test makers.
No data to label kids; no data to close schools; no data to declare teachers HEDI (highly effective, effective, developing, ineffective).
Suppose teachers wrote their own tests.
Imagine.
Join the revolutionaries in Philadelphia. Mark the date in your calendar.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Suppose students developed their own assessments? Chose their own classes? Designed their own curriculum?
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I designed a six credit independent study which included developing my own assessments based on the course curriculum which I also designed. The course was initially approved and finally graded by a mentor professor.
Is that what you are presenting as an idea? Or didn’t I quite get the point you are making?
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….During my undergraduate studies.
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Betsy, it could look like that. I’m behind the opt out movement, I just don’t think it goes far enough. I remember being miserable in Junior High and High School, and saying to myself, “Self, school doesn’t need to be dreadful. You should become a teacher and teach only interesting material in a fun, energetic way!” So that’s what I did, and kids like me, and I’m a National Board Certified teacher so I’m not a bum, but I’ve come to the conclusion that no matter how interesting and fun class can be, it’s still my definition of interesting and fun, and the tests I develop assess kids on what I think is important for them to learn. They get very little or no say, and they are compelled by law to endure me and every other teacher in the school. Not really sure how that’s supposed to foster meaningful learning.
My point is, anything that is compelled by law or regulation in education ought to be opted out of, and power put into the hands of students and their families. Forcing classes and tests teaches dependency, and that’s no way to build a free society.
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Then, Huskie, students might develop a love of learning on a mass scale. That’s far too dangerous to the status quo.
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Yes, Opt-Out is the answer to the question, What’s our best weapon to stop the private war destroying public education and abusing our kids? The folks at United Opt-Out are dead serious about growing parent refusal into a force that defends our kids, our schools, and our teachers from endless costly testing imposed on us by the billionaire boys club and their crony politicians. Come to Philly in Feb. and spread the parent rebellion to all corners of the nation.
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Reminder: At the NPE conference Eskelsen (NEA) stated that opting out won’t stop the testing! Randi Weingarten stated that parents should have the right to opt out AND opt in. Opt in is not an option as it is the default. Weingarten and Eskelsen are the biggest obstacles to an effective fight against corporate and billionaire-boys-club reforms.
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Diane, Why don’t we have local chapters of opt out? I’m in San Jose, CA, but it is not possible for me to go to Philadelphia. Why can’t local union chapters organize all over the country, so we can show that it is teachers all over the country who are sick and tired of over testing and corporate reform? We are strong in numbers, but we don’t seem to be very well organized to get those numbers heard.
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Laureen, United Opt Out National has state leaders who can help you with this. We have four in California: Heather, email: hpoland@gmail.com; Larry, email: lsquared21@roadrunner.com; Cynthia, email: cynthialiu333@gmail.com. The national unions have been bought by the corporations, therefore, local union organizing around opt out has been a challenge and in many cases impossible.
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Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Texas Education.
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I live in New York. My 11 grade daughter has adhd and dyslexia. The regents are invalid test that don’t show what she cal learn. i would opt out in a flash but the regents are exit exams. if I opt her out, she doesn’t get a high school diploma. This is an area that isn’t spoken about:the problems with opting out of exit exams
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Lenore, I agree, and I’ve been saying so to anyone who will listen. Opt out doesn’t go far enough. I don’t know why we fight some compulsory testing but allow for others. We have English Language Learners who sit for 12 hours of compulsory testing. I feel sick being a part of it:
http://www.theoutlawacademy.com/12-hours-of-testing/
I would encourage your daughter to get her GED…one test instead of five…or look into whether or not your local community college has a program for homeschoolers that will result in a High School equivalency and college credit (we have a college around here that offers such a program). I think she’d have to be 16 years old, but I’m not a lawyer and there are probably ways around that. Or she can stick it out and hope for the best. Personally, I’d like to see all students walk away from regents exams and pursue an alternative of their choosing. But I’d most like them to wake up to the fact that there are choices, and they have freedom.
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Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply. those are suggestions I will check out. as a retired school social worker, I know the gred is not any easier than the regents and I believe Pearson has the contract for them now. for my daughter, the ged wouldn’t because it’s the structure of a high test stake that’s the problem. many states like Hawaii don’t have exit exams . i have considered seeing if we live there for a term and she attends some class, if they will give her a diploma. no stayes near is are no exit exam stayes. Thete was a school in Maine that offered llegitimate high school diplomates but they stopped. Kids without a diploma are bared by law from attending CUNY community colleges. for profit colleges have programs but they are expensive rip offs. You are the first person to offer any suggestions. her school feels if she can’t pass the regents, put her in a non diploma track for the state vocational program to train her. Work life is limiting without a high school diploma, I don’t eant to consider it. thanks for listening, I can’t get anyone to pay attention either.
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