NYState Ed Comm MaryEllen Alia: Fred Smith’s opinions are misleading and include fabrications regarding state assessments.
Fred Smith:
Calling on critical thinkers. Please read below and decide whom to believe -- Commissioner MaryEllen Elia or Fred the Fabricator?I may have missed where she shows that NYSED took steps to inform parents about the stand-alone field tests. Thank you.
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-the-seeds-of- a-poisonous-testing-tree- 20190516- w55d7mz3ejec7hq4kb7xc7skbq- story.html
This story is almost funny but the fact that Elia felt it necessary to respond to Fred, one of my fellow 2018 Skinny Awards - winners (don't forget to sign up for this year's event - Wednesday June 19 ) shows that nerves are being touched.
Getting it wrong
Albany: Fred Smith’s opinions are misleading and include fabrications regarding state assessments (“The seeds of our poisonous testing tree,“ Op-Ed, May 17). Field testing is essential for the development of the state exams that are fair, valid and reliable. Because New York State shares 75% or more of the test questions with the public, it is necessary to develop new, secure exams for each school year. Our goal is always to require the least amount of testing necessary. In fact, each elementary and intermediate school is asked to administer only one 40-minute field test to students in only one grade level. Every question on the spring 2019 field tests is written by New York State educators and if a parent chose to opt out of the operational test, their child is not expected to participate in the field test. Having students participate in these field tests is in the very best interest of all of our students.
------- MaryEllen Elia, state education commissioner
Let Fred take over on this Change the Stakes thread:
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May 23, 2019, 3:52 PM (2 days ago)
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In response to Deborah Naomi on Elia's response to my DN opinion piece on May 17 (referenced below).
I believe Elia serves as a buffer for the Regents. Much like John King was Tisch's punching bag. Only Elia is more adept than he was.
As Leonie notes, usually the Commissioner does not respond to criticisms of SED actions. I believe she was forced to come up with an answer after I emailed each member of the Board of Regents asking them to strongly consider suspension of the stand-alone field tests.
I will forward you my appeal to them shortly.
I think there's still hope this can happen by order of the Regents, if there is will among them to examine what's wrong with the testing program. The stand-alone field tests are its weakest link. If the Regents don't intervene to halt them, then their position must be seen as a desire to keep the annual testing cycle going--with all of its attendant negative consequences. I urge each of us in Opt Out Nation to email or call one or more Regents and ask her or him to have the Board restrain SED from the malpractice of stand-alone field testing.
I'm not surprised that the Commissioner's letter
Even though the time is short, I believe we are at a crossroads moment that has to be seized in order to know where our highest education policy makers stand. Our children and schools have paid the price too long.
Fred
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Deborah:
1. If field testing is as essential for the development of state exams that are fair, valid and reliable, as she claims it is, what's her excuse for the fact that the past six years of state exams have been anything but fair, valid, or reliable, not to mention developmentally-inappropriate and poorly constructed???? Yes, her assertion is obviously false.
2. I get the need to develop new, secure exams for each school year. But clearly, whatever SED is doing w/r/t field testing isn't producing the required or desired operational results. Ditto.
In response to Deborah Naomi on Elia's response to my DN opinion piece on May 17 (referenced above).
I believe Elia serves as a buffer for the Regents. Much like John King was Tisch's punching bag. Only Elia is more adept than he was.
As Leonie notes, usually the Commissioner does not respond to criticisms of SED actions. I believe she was forced to come up with an answer after I emailed each member of the Board of Regents asking them to strongly consider suspension of the stand-alone field tests.
I will forward you my appeal to them shortly.
I think there's still hope this can happen by order of the Regents, if there is will among them to examine what's wrong with the testing program. The stand-alone field tests are its weakest link. If the Regents don't intervene to halt them, then their position must be seen as a desire to keep the annual testing cycle going--with all of its attendant negative consequences. I urge each of us in Opt Out Nation to email or call one or more Regents and ask her or him to have the Board restrain SED from the malpractice of stand-alone field testing.
I'm not surprised that the Commissioner's letter
Even though the time is short, I believe we are at a crossroads moment that has to be seized in order to know where our highest education policy makers stand. Our children and schools have paid the price too long.
Fred
Folks,
Here was my direct appeal to the Regents sent last week on the heels of my Daily News opinion piece. I assume each Regent received it. I believe that Commissioner Elia (whom I did not address) was brought into this by the Board and that is why she wrote a letter that was published today by the News. You be the judge of whether her letter addressed the testing issues that are involved.
Of course, I'm not privy to what the Regents actually did, and I'm hoping they're not using Commissioner Elia's response as a cover to remain above the fray. If so, I would take that to mean they do not have the resolve to change the testing program.
Please note that when the Regents got the appeal, there was time to intervene before the stand-alone field testing began on May 20. Now there are only a few days (counting tomorrow and the three-day weekend) to act before the paper-based field tests start on Tuesday. That's enough time to order SED to direct schools to stop a significant amount of field testing until further notice. It would be the height of cynicism for anyone to claim there is not enough time to press the pause button. There is always enough time to stop cease doing something that is demonstrably bad.
Below are the email addresses of the Regents. I'm hoping collectively and individually we can reach them in the next 24 to 72 hours to find out where they stand and to persuade them to defer the field tests. Remember, the tests are not mandated; there is no sufficient reason they must be given in June; the stand-alone field tests have been amply rejected by many schools statewide over the last few years; the results we pay for form a misleading basis for developing future operational exams. And parents have not been notified about them or ask for their consent.
Thank you for listening.
Fred
Dear Members of the Board of Regents:
I am urging you to act with immediacy to stop a recurring testing problem. Your urgent intervention is required to stop the New York State Education Department from implementing stand-alone field testing starting on Monday--when 263,163 students are expected to try out material for next year's ELA and math exams. The sampling plan assigns 2,490 schools to engage in this flawed way to develop tests. There are many reasons--ethical, psychometric and educational--to reject the stand-alone approach. Please see this piece in today's Daily News.
Not least of the reasons is that parents of the students who have been targeted have not been informed that their children are being subjected to this exercise. In fact, Sens. Jackson and Ramos have put forth a proposed bill called the "right to opt out of high-stakes testing act." It has broad applicability and affirms two principles: 1- Parents must be notified about all upcoming tests; and 2) Parents may refuse to have their children participate (without fear of punishment or coercion) in testing.
These principles were espoused by your esteemed chancellor, in a statement issued weeks before the Jackson bill was introduced. An identical bill has just been framed by Assemblyman Epstein.
Interestingly, though time is of the essence to stay all upcoming field testing, next week's tests are due to be computer-based. The paper-based field tests are not scheduled to begin until a week later on May 28. The latter are aimed at 1,326 schools and 139,183 students.
It is imperative that you be polled on the matter of directing NYSED to suspend this large scale, un-mandated testing program until all parents have been given sufficient notification about the tests so that their right to opt out is honored. Currently neither is the case. There is nothing sacrosanct about having to administer field tests at this late time in the school year.
An order from the Regents to NYSED to desist would allow ample time to study the merits of the stand-alone approach and to decide whether this method should be discontinued. At the very least, giving these tests should be deferred until the fall.
I appeal to you to confer today and to act with dispatch.
Respectfully,
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