Betsy DeVos claims to be an advocate for parental rights. She is not.
Utah passed a law recognizing the right of parents to opt their children out of state testing. The US Department of Education rejected the Utah ESSA Plan because it respects parents’ rights.
I want to remind every reader to recognize that the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed parental rights in a 1925 decision called “Pierce v. Society of Sisters.”the right of parents to make decisions about their child.” That decision rejected an Oregon law that required every child to attend public schools, not private or religious schools. The court said, in a decision that was never reversed and has often been cited, that the child is not a “mere creature of the state,” and parents have the power to make decisions for their children, excepting (I believe) where their health and safety are concerned.
Given DeVos’ advocacy for school choice and parental rights, it is shocking that she has agreed to punish the schools, the children and families of Utah for recognizing the rights of parents to refuse the state test.
In New York State, education officials are threatening financial punishments and other more drastic actions for schools that don’t meet the 95% participation rate. Very few schools in the state did. We will see a state takeover of 90% of the schools in the state?
ACLU, where are you?
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Agree, this is one of many ways that families should be empowered.
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It seems antithetical that Christian libertarian DeVos would interfere with a parent’s right to protect a child from harmful testing as this is a perfect example of federal overreach. DeVos is a hypocrite. She whips out her choice dogma when it is convenient to grab public money to pay for private schools, but not when it relates testing in public education because it aligns with her goal to destroy public education. I hope the ACLU or Education Law Center challenges this affront to parents’ rights.
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As a retired teacher as well I follow our community demise under the common core regime. What is astounding is that NO LEGAL ACTIONS HAVE BEEN TAKEN RE: THE FORCING OF STUDENTS TO TAKE A TEST!?
As far as the ACLU goes an outcry should be sent to them in the way of emails, calls, letters, etc. by organizations and individuals.
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imagine not just personal lawsuits, but COLLECTIVE massive lawsuits arguing for the rights of children
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I contend that THE major civil rights issue today is the state sponsored discrimination against students vis a vis inherent mental capabilities through its (invalid) standardized testing regime. Some students are rewarded others are castigated through a scheme that inherently sorts and separates students. It is discrimination no different than discrimination vis a vis skin color, gender, age, etc. . . which the individual has little control over.
Why should the state through its public schools be allowed to discriminate against students through the invalid scheme that is standardized testing?
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It was always incoherent, ed reform’s insistence that public school students follow the testing mandate when the whole “movement” is based on “choice”
DeVos (and many, many ed reformers) promote private school vouchers constantly. Do all those kids have to test? If not, why not?
The truth is the only thing the “movement” offers public school students is these tests. If it weren’t for the testing ed reformers would be completely irrelevant to 90% of families.
Their own lobbyists know this- ed reform has two pillars-
Number One: “choice”
Number Two “accountability” – that means tests, and it’s the one and only part that applies to 90% of families.
I cannot identify a single thing ed reform has contributed to public schools in Ohio other than testing schemes and they have utterly dominated Ohio policy for 25 years.
If all you have is a hammer….
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Devos is treading light water each and every day. This woman is trying to enforce her will on the American people and especially parents of children. Devos has the gaul to double talk her crap agenda and it truly is getting sickening.
Every story about Devos is a negative story. One would think that Devos would do something for some positive PR but never. It seems that Devos never does anything that would be considered positive press. Rather, each and every day it seems Devos is denying or making issues worse regarding our schools.
Devos truly has become toxic and the stories and press clippings continue to berate her and the press prints nothing but stories to make parents scream. Truly a shame that this is what we have for a secretary.
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“enforce her will”
That will being an xtian fundamentalist discriminatory scheme.
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Yet another reason to abolish the federal dept of education. With so many people all across the political spectrum from conservatives to liberals, calling for the end of this monstrosity, why has it not been done?
This is also another reason for school choice/vouchers. Parents who enroll their children in non-public schools, do not have their children facing the endless testing regime, that public-school children must endure.
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“This is also another reason for school choice/vouchers.”
Which is exactly why DeVos is threatening them; otherwise she would be pushing the same mandates in charter and voucher schools.
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I sometimes resent the data collection in public schools because I can’t identify any benefit TO public schools that comes out of it, but my kids all tested under my general approach that if they’re in a public system they sometimes have to go with the majority.
Obviously there are limits, but I feel this is a reasonable concession and if public school parents don’t want so much testing they’re going to have to vote and throw some of these people out. That’s sort of the deal with a public system. It isn’t all my “choice”- my kids are part of a broader whole.
I do “opt him out” of some of the census-type information public schools collect, because I have been a public school parent for 25 years and I have yet to see a single worthwhile “improvement” come out of it. I don’t know what they do with all this info once it’s collected. They must throw it in the trash because they have been reciting exactly the same slogans for 25 years. There has to be some payoff for forcing people to do something and ed reform never gets to the carrot. It’s all stick. Does it make a bit of difference if I voluntarily report census info? What changes?
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Lawsuit time, Utah.
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I thought local control was a conservative value?
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I consider it a great positive that this law was even passed…especially in a state not unfriendly to Ed Reform. Yes, where are you, ACLU?
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Yet another reason to abolish the federal dept of education. With so many people all across the political spectrum from conservatives to liberals, calling for the end of this monstrosity, why has it not been done?
Where does the federal government have the right and/or power to dictate to parents in a state-run school, whether their children should take endless, meaningless tests? This is government “snooping” at its worst.
This is also another reason for school choice/vouchers. Parents who enroll their children in non-public schools, do not have their children facing the endless testing regime, that public-school children must endure.
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Where is the ACLU? Overwhelmed
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