Johanna Garcia | johanna.newyo
Kemala Karmen | kemala@shoot4
Janine Sopp | janinesopp@gm
PRESS RELEASE
Public
School Students (& a Few Parents) Call Out NYCDOE for Spreading
Lies to Suppress Test Refusal; Declare NYS Grade 3-8 Tests Harm
Children, Exacerbate Inequities in Schools
At
the March 23rd meeting of the City Council Education Committee, Council
Member Brad Lander described as “disturbing” a change in the NYCDOE
testing FAQ, "Whereas last year's [FAQ] let parents know about their
right to opt out, the new guide does not include any language about parents’ rights to opt out; it is significantly different.”
Disturbing, but just the latest disregard for parent rights when it comes to test refusal rights.
“Once
again, I call upon the NYC Department of Education to inform all
parents of their right to opt their children out of high-stakes
standardized tests,” said NYC Council Member Daniel Dromm. “These exams,
originally intended to assess academic development, are still being
used inappropriately by state and federal education departments.
Standardized tests were never meant to be used the way in which they are
used today. The Department has still not done an adequate job of
informing parents of their right to opt out despite the City Council unanimously passing a resolution in 2015 calling on school officials to do just that.”
CM Dromm’s characterization of the tests’ use as inappropriate is correct. Too blunt an instrument to be used diagnostically (60-70% of all students fail, rising to 90+% for special education students, and 95% for English Language Learners) and arriving far too late in the year to be useful for planning instruction, the tests are good primarily for one thing: providing data that Betsy Devos and others can use as cover to legitimize the closing of schools, the purchase of costly and unproven technologies and materials that enrich for-profit testing and publishing companies, and the replacement of public school communities with corporate or privately-controlled education.
“The
Department of Education has a responsibility to ensure that parents or
guardians are fully informed about the options available regarding their
children’s education, including their child’s right to opt out of
standardized testing,” said NYC Council Member and Education Committee
Chair Mark Treyger. High stakes tests do not holistically measure
student and school achievement. The DOE must ensure that our city’s
families are informed of their right to opt out, and should work to
advance more inclusive and accurate methods of assessing academic
progress and school success.”
Because
test scores tend to correlate with income, it is no surprise that the
schools being closed or the schools doubling down on test prep in a
frantic effort to boost scores (because they fear being closed), are
schools that serve large numbers of low-income students. The use of the
tests, then is not only inappropriate, but discriminatory. “When the
tests are essentially weapons aimed at our schools and our children by
federal mandate, I expect our state and city departments of education to
do everything they can to stand with us against this onslaught,” said
Sharna Tucker, a Brooklyn parent currently studying to be a teacher. “I
understand that districts are obligated to administer the tests, but
they don’t have to, and shouldn’t be trying to, ‘sell’ us on their
supposed virtues with backpacked flyers and deceptive emails. And they definitely should
not be withholding or distorting information about our right to refuse
the tests, when test refusal is the most effective strategy to shift our
schools’ myopic focus away from improving test scores and back to the
public good of preparing young people to be curious, engaged citizens,”
added Rosemarie Maldonado-Wright.
Johanna
Garcia, Washington Heights mother and President of Community Education
Council 6, added, “Our local school officials are cowering down to scare
tactics from the White House and the state house. Threats of
withholding money or other punitive measures are unsubstantiated and
even if they were legitimate, we should be acting the same way as when
they threaten to pull funding for not cooperating with ICE agents.
Otherwise, we lose any remaining sense of autonomy and make it open
season on our children's public education and parents' civil liberties.”
The
children are listening. “Emma Gonzalez said, ‘Adults like us when we
have strong test scores, but they hate us when we have strong
opinions,’” said Matilda Seki, a Brooklyn 6th grader. Her twin Eliza,
added, “As a student who has been opting out and fighting the state
tests for years, I know that it is important for youths to use their
voice, and in doing that, make a difference.” Fifth grader Zoe Alperin
noted that not everyone knew they could refuse, “It is unfair that I
know I have a right to opt out, but kids in other schools don't have the
same info.”
We
call on the DOE and the Mayor to stop and desist from sharing
misinformation about the "ramifications" of opting out. Stop pressuring
principals to pressure their parent bodies. Immediately issue a memo to
principals and ed staff clarifying--not spinning-- information about
test participation, including the distinction for “institutional
exclusion” (as opposed to parent-initiated refusal) written into NYS’s
ESSA plan. As is the case in some of our neighboring suburban
districts, parent communications should acknowledge a parent’s right to
refuse the tests and even provide a simple city-issued form where
parents can indicate whether they will have their children participate
in or refuse the tests. Work with parents and educators to achieve
policies that support public education rather penalize it. Strive to
make classrooms places that empower all our children by encouraging
exploration and the asking of questions rather than constricting their
paths to the selection of someone else’s “right” answer.
Parents’ voices should be heard and honored when it comes to their children's education.
The
voices of teachers and administrators should be honored for advocating
authentic student learning; they should not be pressed into service for
top-down policy makers who don’t know or work with our children.
Students' voices should be heard and honored when it comes to
participating in a rich and engaging learning environment that values
who they are and all their talents.
NYC
Opt Out is a loose coalition of NYC parents who are concerned about the
impact of high-stakes testing on New York City's schools, children, and
teachers. NYC Opt Out represents families in schools all over the city
and is 100% volunteer-driven, with no corporate, foundation, or union
sponsors. Parent volunteers have paid for flyers and website costs from their own pockets.
