Tim Slekar, dean of education at Edgewood College in Wisconsin, was outraged when he learned that the legislature passed a bill requiring all students to pass a civics test if they wanted to graduate from high school. His son will opt out of this test, and he urges other parents to do the same.
He writes:
Quick Fact. In the Spring, Representative James “Jimmy Boy” Edming slipped into the Wisconsin budget (without debate or public commentary) a provision that requires all students attending public schools to pass a Civics test in order to graduate from High School. According to Representative Edming it seemed like a”good idea” and would “help instill the responsibilities of citizenship.”
It’s now November and as a parent of a 10th-grade Wisconsin public school student I recently received a letter from my son’s school informing us that “successful completion of this exam will be required for graduation.”
Oh well what are you going to do?
I don’t know about all of you but as a social studies scholar and advocate for participatory citizenship I plan on challenging this disaster of a “good idea.”
Isn’t it amazing how legislators are so cavalier about writing laws telling schools and teachers how to do their job?
Here are Tim’s reasons for objecting to the mandated test as a graduation requirement:
It’s an exit exam for graduation and will have a detrimental influence on the graduation rate in Wisconsin.
He is already required to pass a civics course during his time in high school and I have faith in his teacher. She is best qualified and in the best position to assess my son’s knowledge of civics.
The civics test mandated is culturally insensitive and discriminatory.
This test actually diminishes civic participation.
This test will use valuable instruction time pushing a false patriotism at the expense of engaging experiences that motivate our students to become active citizens and critical “consumers” of political rhetoric.
It’s time to stop the mind numbing, skill and drill ethos that is destroying the potential of our children who overwhelmingly understand that the test and punish culture sucks the life out of their one chance to be educated.
Tim is willing to compromise. He will endorse the test requirement if the legislators who mandated it and other elected officials in the state also take it and publish their scores.
The people and the children of the state of Wisconsin have a right to know if their elected leaders are proficient in their knowledge of American Civics. And I do not want any excuses like “I already graduated from high school.” Too bad. If all of our children have to prove their civic competency by taking a high stakes test then so do our elected representatives.
I want to see Governor Scott Walker’s scores!
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Reblogged this on David R. Taylor-Thoughts on Education.
I’d laugh at the idiocy in Wisconsin, but I live in NYS where lunacy reigns. It’s no sense throwing stones when your schools are made of glass.
They should see if Scott Walker can pass the civics test first before they inflict it on students.
Hillary Clinton”s incredibly mild deviation from the ed reform lock-step line has DC panicking:
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/11/hillary-clinton-charter-schools-education-215661
Dear God, but these people don’t take criticism well. She moved about an inch away from Obama/Walker/Kasich and they’re freaking out. The donors are nervous! Man the barricades!
Thanks for the link. I enjoyed their comment,”(charters) they have become especially popular in urban areas including New Orleans, Detroit and the District of Columbia.” Popular? Really! No, they were forced on the residents without a “choice” so they could quash their collective voice, despite demonstrations and protests from residents.
No one may criticize a charter school, ever. This is from people who spend a good part of their professional lives either bashing public schools or pretending they don’t exist.
I know they’re national lobbyists but they somehow need to be made to understand that “ed reform” isn’t all NYC and New Orleans. It’s a disaster in the Great Lakes states and Pennsylvania, and that is a huge swathe of the country.
I believe that we have the same requirement in the Show Me State except it is a test on the Constitution and not on “civics”. As it is, I’ve never heard of anyone being held back/not graduating for having not passed the test. There are probably more students who don’t pass the written portion of the drivers test than those that don’t successfully complete the Constitution tests. There must be some kind of waver for certain IEP students (even if it is the aide “helping” the student take the test, you know a “modified” test/testing environment.
However requiring the politicians to take it wouldn’t do any good as they’d all be given “helpful study guides” ahead of time.
If completion of the a civics course isn’t enough to ensure that a student has learned the material, then, by all means, let’s give them another test. But, of course, how do we know that completion of that test ensures that a student has learned the material? I suggest that we give a second test to hold the first test accountable. Of course, that means we will need a third test to hold the second test accountable and so on. Infinitely many tests is what we need to make sure that everyone is actually learning.
I know the idea of adults taking these tests they foist off on students is always dismissed out of hand by those same adults, but I think it’s a seriously great idea.
Imagine how different the Common Core testing marketing launch would have been if highly-placed ed reform leaders had opened it by taking the test and publishing the results? It would have been great- a real debate that starts with humility and walking the walk and “we’re all in this together”. People would be shocked, but in a good way, and it’s so much more interesting than another droning, grim lecture to the peons. I confess too, I would love to see Duncan and Bush scores. Maybe a clever state lawmaker could add that requirement to legislation adding new tests- the adults who promoted the test have to take it first and release scores publicly. I think new testing laws would grind to a screeching halt 🙂
I’m old enough to remember when Wisconsin was the “good government” state in the midwest along with Minnesota. Good job destroying that reputation you inherited but didn’t earn yourselves, feckless and careless adults. Bravo. 100 years to earn it and 5 to destroy it.
It only takes a year to destroy a high quality program. Unfortunately, there are examples of this destruction across the country.
“The Civics Test”
A civics test is what we need
To test if Jimmy’s up to speed
On democratic governance
Like “Freedom-fries” instead of “French-“
I like the idea of politicians taking any of the tests that they force on the public. In fact I believe that we should make an amendment that requires those in politics to have to “submit” to any test that our students have to take to make sure said politicians are “career ready”. Should they not be able to get a “proficient” score they should have to resign from there office and return to high school to become “career ready”. Bet you those test disappear really fast.
Imagine the score on one of these tests from: Sarah Palin, Trump or Carson
Here’s my good idea for an exit-project. Have all kids write a solid paper on how to tell the difference between an evidence-based fact and “talking points” or “propaganda” as a condition for graduation from high school. It could be judged by their teachers as to whether or not they passed, but after a while, maybe we would have a lot less of scandalous repeating of things like Common Core talking points by journalists as if they were established fact (internationally benchmarked! higher and more rigorous!).
I have been asking anyone and everyone to “show me the factual evidence” for a long time, and so far (surprise!) no one can. And yet I’m not seeing this fact in the national press.
Your problem, like mine, is that you’re from the “Show Me State.”
I realize a lot of this is just tongue in cheek, but frankly, I don’t care if every legisltor in the country takes a “civics exam” — that still doesn’t improve the idea of making it a graduation requirement. It is a terrible idea — and state legislatures needs to cut this sort of drivel out.
On the other hand, I LOVE MissouriTeacherAgainstStandardizedTesting’s idea. In this day and age (and maybe this was always true), there can be fewer skills more useful than the ability to identify the difference between evidence-based facts and “propaganda.” Love it, love it, love it.
A small problem has cropped up in Utah this year. A civics test is now required for graduation, starting with this year’s seniors. The law was passed in January of 2015. The problem is that opting out is enshrined in Utah law. But, the civics test is required to graduate. If parents opt their children out of the civics test, the children don’t graduate. So, which is it? Allowing unlimited opting out, or the civics test? Obviously, no one at the state legislature thought this through.
Hmm, this is an interesting question for NYS, given that all our students have to pass 5 Regents exams to graduate.
I’m sure “Jimmy Boy” had no idea what the state requirements were in civics. Unfortunately, there is no law that says he has to know what he is doing when a “proposing” legislation although “Jimmy Boy” seems to have well schooled in how to subvert the democratic process.