Archives for category: Parents
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NYC Protest Today at Noon Against “Protect Eva Act” and Gubernatorial Control

By dianeravitch
March 14, 2014 //
5

Parents and other supporters of public schools will rally today against Governor Cuomo’s attempt to wrest control of the New York City public schools for the benefit of his campaign contributors.

Dan Morris. 917.952.8920.

Julian Vinocur. 212.328.9268.

Media Advisory for Fri. March 14, Noon, Cuomo’s Midtown Office

Rally Against Quid Pro Cuomo State Budget Deal and Gubernatorial Control of NYC Schools

*Parents condemn Cuomo’s pay-to-play budget deal with charter school lobbyists who are bankrolling his re-election campaign and want to undermine New York City’s power over its schools.*

WHAT: Public school parents, community leaders, and elected officials will rally against the budget deal Cuomo clearly orchestrated with the Senate Majority to advance the extremist, anti-de Blasio agenda of charter school lobbyists who are heavily funding the Governor’s re-election campaign. This disturbing Quid pro Cuomo opens the door to gubernatorial control of New York City schools.

WHO: Outraged public school parents, community leaders, and elected officials who won’t stand for Cuomo and the Senate Majority cutting a pay-to-play budget deal with charter school lobbyists.

WHERE: Governor Cuomo’s Midtown office: 633 Third Avenue, between E40th and E41st Streets.

WHEN: Friday, March 14, Noon.

Categories Charter Schools, Education Industry, Harlem Success Academy, New York City, Parents, Privatization, Students, Supporting public schools

Michelle Gundersen: Why Is CPS Harassing Parents and Children Who Opt Out of Testing?

By dianeravitch
March 10, 2014 //
15

Michelle Gundersen, a veteran teacher in the Chicago Public Schools, here describes how the school system is harassing parents and children who try to opt out of unnecessary state testing.

Her own son, without her prompting, said he wanted to opt out of the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT), a test that will soon be phased out and replaced by a Common Core test.

But it was not so easy for other children to opt out, because their principals quizzed them about who prompted them to do it.

In one case, a child was asked to take a visual survey comprised of emoticons, to explain how she felt about opting out and who urged her to do it.

Funny, isn’t it, that our education policymakers prattle on about “choice,” but the one choice parents are not allowed to make is to say NO to standardized testing, even to totally useless tests.

No choice there.

Categories Chicago, Parents, Students, Testing

Slate: Parent Creates Mild Hysteria in Colorado by Opting Her Daughter Out of State Tests

By dianeravitch
March 10, 2014 //
11

Lisa T. McElroy, a law professor, decided that her children would not take the state tests during the year the family spent in Colorado. She checked and found it was legal.

That is when the trouble began, and McElroy found out how much this idea frightened the school staff.

After many phone calls, emails, and meetings with desperate administrators, she had to decide.

“Do I stand on my principles, both personal and political? Or do I put the interests of the very important people and institutions that educate my children above those of my kids? And how can I help ensure that more parents, teachers, administrators, and, yes, policymakers recognize the craziness that is our “accountability above all else” mentality?

“For now, I’m opting out of making any permanent decision about my kids’ participation in high-stakes testing. But for those who say that these tests have no educational value, I disagree, at least to this extent: Opting out of them has been a real learning experience for me.”

Categories Colorado, Parents, Testing

Momma Bears of Tennessee Salute a Valiant Teacher

By dianeravitch
February 27, 2014 //
13

The Momma Bears are one of the potent forces that will drive the corporate-style reformers out of business.

You see, the Momma Bears are not in it for the money or the fame or the power or the control.

They are Mamma Bears, and they don’t back down. They protect their cubs.

They don’t particularly care whether Arne Duncan calls them names or whether the Governor likes them.

They are in it for their children, and (as we say in the South) they ain’t giving up or going away.

In this post, they single out a teacher who told parents the truth about what the state was doing to their children.

They know this teacher is on their side and on the side of their children. He wants to teach, not test. Imagine that!

Who imposed all this testing on these kids? They know:

You can thank these people for this asinine TVAAS evaluation system:

  • TN Board of Education (appointed by Gov. Haslam)
  • TN Commissioner Kevin Huffman (appointed by Gov. Haslam)
  • Governor Haslam (who sent his kids to private schools that didn’t excessively test or rate teachers by test scores)
  • William Sanders (the statistician who came up with this awful system to rate agricultural growth and somehow it is now it is being used to abuse teachers)

The Mamma Bears know that all this testing doesn’t help their children.

They know that it helps Pearson!

If their child fails, guess what they get? More testing!

These are smart Mamma Bears. They will be there after the name Bill Haslam and Kevin Huffman are long forgotten.

You see, there is justice in the world.

Categories Accountability, Education Industry, Parents, Tennessee, Testing

In Honor of Terry Stetson Wilson

By dianeravitch
February 22, 2014 //
4

Colleen Wood, parent leader in Florida, active in 50th No More, and board member of the Network for Public Education, here remembers a true champion of children and public education, Terry Stetson Wilson, who died suddenly a few days ago. Colleen asks that we all Tweet a comment to honor Terry’s good life and work for others. Write your words on Twitter, marked #ForTerry. For her dedication to our children and our society, I add her to our honor roll of heroes of American education.

Colleen writes:

“Relentless, persistent, and dedicated. That is what comes to mind when I think of Terry Stetson Wilson, a friend and fierce advocate for public school children in Florida. Terry unexpectedly passed away Monday evening leaving behind her husband, Tom, two adult children, Christopher and Linzy, dear friends, and countless beneficiaries of her advocacy.

Terry’s work began like many of us when she was first concerned with her own child’s school experience, and grew over time into what is now the Florida Gifted Network. If your child received gifted services in Florida, you can thank Terry Wilson.

When her own children graduated, Terry didn’t leave public education behind. The day she died a group of us were sitting together working on building a statewide coalition. We talked about needing to expand our group, and attract new supporters to public education when someone said we needed more people like Terry. People who stayed even after their own children were gone. She was a role model and inspiration to each of us.

Through her 30 years of advocacy, Terry fought for a high quality public education for every child, and became a staunch defender of teachers. She saw the onslaught against our public school teachers and knew it was not a battle they could win alone. When teacher merit pay was first proposed in Florida in a bill known as SB6, and many of us were upset, Terry wanted action. She always prodded us to do something.

And she did. Terry and a few others formed a Facebook group called Stop SB6. Within a month there were over 60,000 members. That group was a driving force behind the push for our Governor to veto the bill, but many people didn’t know Terry was behind it. She often flew under the radar, but her impact was far-reaching.

And if she met you, if she knew you cared about public education you were hooked. A day didn’t go by without an email, text or call about something you needed to do, and you needed to do it now. Funny thing is that after her death, we’re all learning that’s how Terry was in her whole life: from her family, to her friends, to her love of Florida and fishing. She wanted you to support you, help you, and get you to do something. Now.

In every fight in Florida, from parent trigger to school grades, her first question was, “What are we going to DO?”

We’ve been struggling with how to honor Terry, and then it occurred to us – what are we going to DO? What action are we going to take today to honor Terry and defend public education?

So that’s what we’re asking of you. #ForTerry what are you going to do today to support and defend public education? Share with all of us and #ForTerry who inspired you to this work.

In the words of our colleague, Ray Seaman, “That is perhaps one of the many things Terry taught all of us who had the pleasure of knowing and working with her. Tireless, impatient persistence is oftentimes the only way you get things done, and you never know who you’ll inspire by it.”

We will all have to be tireless, impatient, and persistent if we are to save our schools and our children. Terry inspired all of us to be just that, and we know she’ll inspire you to do something too. #ForTerry.

– Colleen Doherty Wood, parent advocate, 50thNoMore.org

Categories Florida, Honor Roll, Parent trigger, Parents, Students, Supporting public schools

NY Times: Are Parents to Blame for Low Test Scores?

By dianeravitch
February 10, 2014 //
34

The Néw York Times blog published a debate about whether parents are to blame for “failing schools.”

The question is: “Do parents care enough about schools?”

Various writers offer their opinions.

The debate is based on President Obama’s assertion in his State of the Union address that parents don’t demand enough.

Of course, that begs the question of which schools are “failing” and how they are identified. It leaves aside the fact that the overwhelming majority of such schools enroll high proportions of students who are poor, are English language learners, have severe disabilities, and/or are racially segregated. It leaves aside inequitable resources that affect class size and availability of programs, after-school activities, music, technology, and other amenities that affluent districts take for granted.

Leonie Haimson has an excellent contribution arguing that this is an effort to shift blame from policy makers to parents

Brian Jones says that the question shifts blame from society–which is indifferent to children–to their parents, many of whom struggle for daily survival in a society that accepts poverty as inevitable.

Categories Parents, Poverty, Students

A Special Message to BATs about the PTA

By dianeravitch
February 7, 2014 //
32

This post is a continuation of the previous one.

I am addressing my many friends who are BATs.

I am asking you to work with your local PTAs to battle against privatization and to oppose attacks on teachers.

In state after state, public education is under attack. Teachers are under attack.

Build coalitions with parents, especially local PTAs.

We are natural allies.

PTAs want to strengthen their schools.

Work with them.

We must build a powerful coalition to support and improve our public schools and the teaching profession.

We are in this together, to do what’s right for children and for our society.

Alone, you lose.

Together, we win.

Categories Corporate Reformers, Parents, Privatization, Resistance

Breaking News: Chicago Teachers Union Supports Parents Who Opt Out of ISAT!

By dianeravitch
February 3, 2014 //
44

This is not good news for Pearson, whose stock recently took a tumble. The Chicago Teachers Union is supporting parents who boycott the obsolete ISAT:

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                   CONTACT:                      Stephanie Gadlin

February 3, 2014                                                                                                                               312/329-6250      

 

CTU SUPPORTS PARENT BOYCOTT OF LOW-STAKES ISAT

Illinois State Achievement Test is costly, obsolete and steals learning time

 

CHICAGO—In advance of the Illinois State Achievement Test (ISAT) to be issued to Chicago Public School students March 3-14, 2014, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) today announced support for parents choosing to opt their children out of testing and renewed a call for the Chicago Board of Education to cease administration of the ISAT.

The ‘low stakes’ test is administered over the course of eight days in all elementary schools. Formerly used to help qualify 7th grade students for selective enrollment high schools. The district recently issued a memorandum to teachers stressing the value of “rigorous, high-quality assessments,” in measuring student progress. The ISAT, however, is not aligned to any CPS curriculum, and in Chicago, it is no longer used to measure student progress, school performance, promotion, or for any other purpose.

 “The ISAT is an obsolete test—it has no use to educators or administrators and the state is junking it next year,” said CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey. “It is of no use in selective enrollment, and serves no purpose other than to give students another standardized test.”

Illinois paid over $18 million this year to Pearson Corporation for the ISAT. The portion attributed to CPS is roughly $3.4 million, impacting over 171,000 students. The total cost of administering the tests are the untold hours of preparation for the exam, and the loss of valuable instructional hours that could be spent on real learning.

  

For the last decade, since the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), the ISAT test has been the primary lever used by CPS for its destructive, destabilizing policies of closures and turnarounds. System-wide, the ISAT has infected the vigor and breadth of curriculum as teachers and students became stymied by the requirements of a narrow test-based approach to learning. NCLB has now been panned as a broad failure, but with the transition into more new tests, CPS threatens to double-down on the failed policy of standardized-test based accountability.  

 The CTU believes that the letter teachers recently received was recognition of the fear that parents will opt out of the Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress (NWEA MAP) assessment, despite threats that students without MAP scores will not be eligible for selective enrollment, there will be no alternate instruction given during the days of testing and children who are not participating in the assessment will be left to fend for themselves in “self-guided activity.”  The CPS letter to parents also created an additional hurdle for parents, who oppose the excessive class time devoted to test prep and test administration, to opt their children out of testing.

 Last year, the CTU joined teachers, students, parents and education advocates nationwide standing in solidarity with Garfield High School in Seattle and all Seattle public schools refusing to administer the MAP.

Categories Chicago, Education Reform, Parents, Testing

Breaking News: The Hero Parents of Newark

By dianeravitch
January 29, 2014 //
13

Last night, the parents of Newark spoke out in unison against the bullying tactics of the Christie administration.

As veteran journalist Bob Braun reported, state-appointed superintendent Cami Anderson stormed out of the meeting after a parent accused her of not caring as much about Newark’s children as she does about her own.

The parents of Newark are fighting together against not only state control of their district, which has disempowered them, but against Anderson’s plan to close many public schools and turn them over to charter operators.

The school board president has been heroic in standing up to the high-handed tactics of the Christie administration, which assumed it could ignore the parents of Newark.

Board president Antoinette Baskerville Richardson, sitting inches away next to the superintendent, then described Anderson’s plan as “monumentally destabilizing” and “destructive” and criticized her for suppressing “freedom of speech.”

Braun wrote:

“In a clear reference to the mounting revelations of scandals related to political retribution surrounding Christie, Baskerville-Richardson said, “It is clear the attitudes and actions of Cami Anderson reflect the attitudes and actions of Gov. Christie.”

No way. No how. The parents of Newark are mobilized and united.

I am proud to add them to the honor roll for courage against overwhelming odds.

Stand with Newark.

Categories Honor Roll, New Jersey, Parents, Resistance

5 Newark Principals Sue for Freedom of Speech

By dianeravitch
January 28, 2014 //
24

The five Newark principals who were suspended for daring to question Superintendent Cami Anderson’s plan to close their schools have sued her for violating their First Amendment rights. They were joined by a Parent-TeCher organization whose president was barred from his child’s school.

Anderson was appointed by Governor Chris Christie’s administration.

Newark has an elected school board but has been under state control since 1995.

Categories Charter Schools, Closing schools, New Jersey, Parents, Principals
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