A statement from the New York State Parent Teachers Association.
The PTA is worried about the breakdown of the online assessments as well as the excessive time required by the “shortened,” two-day exams.
“We are extremely concerned about technological failures by Questar Assessments, Inc., the vendor who was awarded the NYS testing contract. We are glad that the State Education Department has announced that they will be holding Questar Assessments, Inc. fully accountable for this error. Reports indicate more than 30,000 students had work lost, or had total system failures when trying to take the assessments on computers. Further, we are aware that bandwidth and other technical issues plagued some school districts who were trying to administer computer based assessments.
“It was also disappointing that the state budget was passed without addressing the backlog of Smart Schools Bond Act Plans that have yet to be reviewed or approved.
“Students who were unable to finish should not have to re-take these assessments.
“Further, we are alarmed at the many reports that some students were testing for multiple hours, some into and past lunch periods.
“For ALL children, the duration must be short, and content must be appropriate for these mandated tests,” offered President Gracemarie Rozea. “While we appreciate the reduction of tests from the previous three days to two days, we must ensure that the remaining testing days are short, and that students are not sitting for multiple hours in testing conditions – especially our earliest learners.”
“As a parent of a 3rd grader, I fully understand the concern families have on this issue – and know that we will continue to advocate that standardized assessments be limited in quantity, in duration, and developmentally appropriate,” added Executive Director Kyle Belokopitsky.
“We will continue to communicate our concerns and possible solutions with the Education Department and other stakeholders, and will be asking for a review of the length of tests, and of the content again to ensure tests are developmentally appropriate for all children.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
It’s sad that it takes major SNAFUs like this to get the PTA to speak up, and even still all they’re speaking up about is the SNAFUs. I really wish the PTA would wake and see that the tests themselves are pure bunk, even if they went off without a hitch.
LikeLike
Completely agree. While their message could be considered off Ed Reform narrative, the issues they raise have easy fixes that miss the fundamental problems regarding testing. I wonder i the NY Opt Out movement has ever considered getting into the state PTA. Could be a positive development.
LikeLike
Two of my sons had IEP’s (one 6th-12th, the other K-12). In both cases, the LD interfered with ability to focus for long periods of time. Verbally articulate musicians, capable of creative projects etc, but unable to produce sufficient quantity written output during time allotted.
The untimed testing accommodation was horrible, whether a chapter test/ MT/ final – & this was before NCLB testing. It means you’re taking the kids least capable of sustained focus/ sitting still– & having them strain away for extra seat-hrs! To what end?
And the same mentality pertained to hw. You HAD to finish all of every assnt by semester’s end. My eldest’s 2nd-gr teacher reqd him & a similarly-afflicted friend to come in Sat’s for hrs at a time. I put my foot down w/the 3rd-gr teacher: I sign off that he’s spent 1/2-hr max on each assnt, & that’s IT. (At least at home they could run around or take a piano break in between assnts to refresh.)
Here we are 20 yrs later w/the same crap going on, doubling-down on it to produce meaningless stats for the govt.
LikeLike
If I understand it correctly the national PTA, which is completely captured by ed reformers, is not the same as the state or local affiliates.
That’s what I have been told anyway- that I shouldn’t attribute the national orgs mindless cheerleading for ed reform to the local chapters.
LikeLike
I think you are correct, based on my research just one reformer–the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
LikeLike
This is kind of big news in the ongoing saga of ECOT in Ohio:
“Education regulators are reviewing a whistleblower’s claim that Ohio’s then-largest online charter school intentionally inflated attendance figures tied to its state funding using software it purchased after previous allegations of attendance inflation, The Associated Press has learned.
A former technology employee of the now-shuttered Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow said he told the Ohio Department of Education last year that school officials ordered staff to manipulate student data with software obtained following the state’s demand that it return $60 million in overpayments for the 2015-2016 school year.
The employee spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity for fear of professional repercussions for speaking out. His concerns were first raised in an Aug. 3 email to the state a month before it released its 2017 attendance review of ECOT.”
I figured ECOT wouldn’t have been able to pull off this heist without some help from ed reformers embedded at the Oh Dept of Ed. It was just too much money to steal without someone on the inside.
https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2018/04/23/us/ap-us-charter-school-inflated-attendance.html
LikeLike
Testing every year grades 3-8 makes testing the goal and not the measure! You have to take one test in Ela and one in Math during FOUR years of high school to prove competency. Also done in one sitting in about an hour. Exam content also completely released.
I also don’t see and have not heard anything about making Regents exams online.
Change will only happen if parents refuse.
LikeLike
Agreed!
LikeLike
Double agreed!!
LikeLike
Opt the $(@^# out!!!!!!!
LikeLike
“Testing every year grades 3-8 makes testing the goal and not the measure!”
Ay ay ay ay ay ay ay ay ay ay ayayayayayay. Drive me friggin insane!
The damn standardized tests aren’t any kind of “measure”. They are assessments, evaluations and judgments, piss-poor ones at that. COMPLETELY INVALID tests that “measure” nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!!
When the hell are we going to quit using the edudeformer and privateer memes such as the falsehood-filled and error permeated utter nonsense that are standardized tests and their results.
Folks, quit using their discourse/language. Until we do we’ve lost to them before even starting to engage.
LikeLike
All the more reason to OPT OUT!
LikeLike
If PTA is so worried, why don’t they do something about this?
LikeLike
Tennessee is now having problems with Questar. TN Ready is riddled with errors from all accounts, age-inappropriate, and now, students are unable to submit their work, they are losing parts of their essays on computer, and dealing with the added frustration and anxiety.
No, thanks. My 7th grader refused the test. Now, for the SIX school-day mornings in which the test will be administered, we will be visiting a museum, reading books, and reviewing for his additional final exams.
LikeLike