A great story here on WFYI on how some parents are choosing to Opt-Out of the standardized testing in Indiana. Interestingly, the Indiana DOE didn't respond to some of these folks for three months but sent an email the day this story came out. Shows what it takes these days sadly. The conversation is building steam and getting interesting.
Why Some Indiana Parents Won’t Let Their Kids Take State Tests This Spring
They’ve tried organizing. They’ve tried criticizing. They’ve tried testifying.
But despite efforts to get their message out, some parents still feel shut out of the discussion about changes in education policy across Indiana and the nation.
So now, a handful of them is trying a new way to make their point — resisting.
Having long criticized laws like the federal No Child Left Behind act and Indiana’s Public Law 221 for relying too heavily on test scores, small groups of parents are planning to have their students “Opt Out” of statewide testing this spring. On test day, their kids simply won’t show up to school.
- ‘This Page Intentionally Left Blank’: Opt Out In IndianaEvery Indiana third grader will take a new reading exam in March to determine whether he or she can move on to the fourth grade. As Kyle Stokes reports, that’s one more reason some parents who worry about the increasingly-high stakes of state testing don’t want their children taking the exams this spring.Download
‘WE DON’T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH TESTING PER SE’
Though state officials doubt the legality of such a move, organizers say Opt Out is a vehicle parents can use to vent their frustration with education policies. National opponents of high-stakes standardized testing say if as few as five or six percent of students were to skip statewide exams, state officials could no longer consider the rest of the test results valid.
my deepest admiration for places like Indiana and New York for paving thw way! SO many people are afraid to take the first leap-you all have done that and it's time for teachers and parents every other state to find the courage to follow and support these efforts. We cannot wait for the powers that be to aquire some moral compass and care about "other epoples children"-it will never happen-it's time for us to speak for ourselves and preserve the right to a free, quality public education for all children! Way to go Indiana!
ReplyDeleteI am a parent from Indiana, who is opposed to the "reforms" being shoved down our throats. My children attend a parochial school, where most of the parents are in opposition to vouchers because of the government control that accompanies them. All of the Catholic schools in Indianapolis were forced to sign on to them anyway. Recently, I worked with State Senator Scott Schneider on legislation ton withdraw Indiana from the Common Core Standards Initiative. This nationalization of school curriculums and the taking of Federally funded tests spell the end of local control. For Indiana to have relinquished what were deemed by experts as being one of the top four set of math and language arts standards in the nation for inferior Common Core ones is unconscionable. SB373 failed in committee 6-4, but has shed light on this issue. He hopes to keep it alive and try and get it sent to a Summer Study Committee. Please educate your members on this topic and join the fight! We need a grassroots revolt!
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