First New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia placed school districts where parents oppose high-stakes testing on a watch list; then she spear-headed a drive to undermine parental opposition to the tests with threats of sanctions against schools; finally she prided herself on minimal student improvement on state standardized tests; and then, mission completed, Elia resigned.
New York State Allies for Public Education (NYSAPE) have a very different read on the continued push for the high stakes standardized testing of children and the supposed “decline” of the opt-out movement. In a recent press release they challenged state education officials to justify why millions of dollars and uncountable class time are squandered “on a testing system that has done little to improve student success or restore confidence and trust in our state’s education department.”
The testing regime is supposed to promote equity in education. But “after decades of testing, there remain significant gaps in results between Black and Hispanic students and their White and Asian peers, between economically disadvantaged and economically advantaged students, and between students with disabilities and nondisabled students.” NYSAPE charged, “Continuing for another few decades on the same exact path of expensive and excessive tests hoping for different outcomes is a disservice to children and our society.”
NYSAPE also claimed that the small decline in the state’s op-out rate was the result of “fear and intimidation” tactics used to pressure district officials, teachers, and parents to reduce the number of families having their children opt-out of the tests.
NYSAPE wants the “enormous taxpayer funds spent on destructive testing” whose reliability has never been established invested in food programs, after school care and programs, smaller classes, and fully staffed school health offices. Jamaal Bowman, principal of CASA Middle School in the Bronx where he is also a candidate for Congress for the 16th district charged, “These tests are flawed single measures that do not consider the complexity and diversity of intelligence.” According to Kemala Karmen, a founding parent member of NYC Opt Out, “Our state would do better to focus on ensuring that all students start with equal opportunities rather than annually trot out test scores that merely reflect an uneven starting line.”
Another problem with the tests is that tests are administered in the spring and scores are not released until the start of the new school year, so they end up playing no role in improving instruction.
In a scalding analysis of the tests themselves, Jake Jacobs of the NY Badass Teachers Association explained that genuine education is sacrificed while “Students are trained to guess at answers they don’t know, eliminating bad choices and then basically just gambling. Each year, thousands of scores fall right on the borderline of passing/failing, meaning lucky or unlucky guesses determined all these outcomes.” Jacobs, an art teacher who is evaluated based on how students in his school perform on math and reading tests, disputed whether the tests offered a method for “ diagnosing or improving obstacles to learning.”
While the high-stakes testing regime costs New York and states around the country million of dollars that could be spent on education, some people have benefited financially. David Coleman who was a lead figure in the development of Common Core standards measured by state assessments now earns more that $1.5 million a year from his new job at the College Board testing company.
Jeanette Deutermann, parent of two, and founder of Long Island Opt Out wants New York State to ensure that “parents have the right to decide whether to allow their children to participate in high-stakes testing without fear of district retaliation.” She urges NYSED and the Board of Regents to “use the opportunity for a new Commissioner and new direction to move away from test-based education policies.”
On its website, New York State Allies for Public Education has resources to help parents organize against the testing and on how they can opt their own children out of the exams.
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