That is, I hope you can use it to drop another shoe on the
pernicious nature of an essentially covert testing program. The work I
did with Robin Jacobowitz at SUNY New Paltz should not go unnoticed for
what it means to New York City. We, in the City, for many reasons have
been unable to mount a large opt-out movement. Two of the reasons have
been Mayor deBlasio and former Chancellor Farina.
Now we have a chancellor who seems to get it. That remains to be
seen. But immediate investigation of the impact of the latest exams
furnished by Questar, Inc. under a 5-year, $44 million contract with
NYSED, is warranted and would be a good test (no pun intended) of where
he stands. We know the parents and guardians of 440,000 students in the
citywide test population love their kids as much as any mothers or
fathers outside of NYC. But, down here, they have been kept in the
dark, confused and fearful, by City Hall; too busy coping with
the struggles they face each day to make testing resistance a priority;
and thwarted from engaging in unified action by a insurmountable,
dysfunctional school system that has an impenetrable structure.
Perhaps, the stars are aligning to challenge the testing status
quo. Who knows? Chancellor Carranza has taken a strong stance against
the value and influence of the Specialized High School Admissions Test.
He's not afraid of stirring the pot. But when it came to questions
about testing kids in grades 3 - 8, he was quick to characterize opting
out as an "extreme reaction." Indeed, he would allow results on the 7th
grade statewide tests to be entered into murky composites to somehow
reach fairer admissions decisions.
But I digress. If we truly believe that mass annual testing has
poisoned education and caused harm to children, teachers, classrooms and
schools--then as a vital first step toward recovery, I would urge
parents and readers of Ed Notes and others to petition, in writing or in
person (City Council Education Committee Members, in particular), to
urgently seek data on how the 2017 and 2018 exams functioned. This is a
no-risk/high-reward step. And even if we can't promptly rally our
representatives to respond to the cause it remains a no-risk action for
parents to pursue the information.
In a rational world, the information would be available for review
to better understand how the Questar test material--reading passages and
items--worked. The focus would be on how the tests performed in
practice, not on assurances that they were soundly developed and valid,
the usual spin we get from Albany and City Hall about how good the tests
looked on the drawing board. It's the actual evidence that we must no
longer be denied--evidence that provides insight into the content of the
test and quality of the questions in operation.
When we finally secured the data, uur study found that the Common
Core-aligned tests, developed by Pearson and administered statewide
under a five-year contract with SED (2012-2016 at a final cost of $38
million) had a crushing impact on our kids--particularly the youngest in
grades 3 and 4, as well as on ELLs, students with special needs and
minorities. We can't afford to let the State and City pull the wool
over our eyes again. We have every right to the information without
delay, and I believe it is our obligation to engage NYC parents in this
matter.
But, I am not an organizer, Norm. So, I'm hoping you will lend
your cutting edge Ed Notes to those many discerning folks in your
audience who are equally concerned about doing what's best for NYC's
children, parents and schools. Perhaps, we can set up a mechanism or
forum to gain feedback and suggestions. And I trust our collective
judgment to come up with an effective course leading to the timely
transparency that is needed. Whatever path we choose--Count me in!
Fred
(PS: The Jets won a laugher. If that can happen, maybe there's hope for all of us.)
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