Who is refusing Common Core tests for 3rd-8th graders?

[undertheradar]

Gee, more than 10 percent:

http://www.njherald.com/story/28265967/2015/03/04/41-in-some-schools-refuse-parcc-testing

41% in some schools refuse PARCC testing
Posted: Mar 04, 2015 10:04 PM EST Updated: Mar 04, 2015 10:04 PM EST

By DIANA GOOVAERTS

dgoovaerts@njherald.com

As PARCC testing kicks into full gear this week in school districts across the state, parents opposing the new exams are making themselves heard by pouring a veritable avalanche of refusal letters into local schools.

After an initially calm response to the test, Superintendent Brian Fogelson said North Warren Regional High School parents began flooding the administration with refusal letters last week. The result, he said, is that 41 percent of test-eligible students have refused, including 73 percent of students in grade 11.

“The refusals really started to develop about a week and a half ago because we started with very few,” Fogelson said Wednesday. “People got on the bandwagon. I think that parents are trying to make a statement that they feel their children are being over-tested.”

Student population total: 1014

 

[IDoDis]

She needs to get into the real world. In most schools these days, kids in 3rd grade are not 8, they start keyboarding in kindergarten and by 3rd grade can type very well. Our kids had essay questions like that way back when. Not ALL of the questions on the test are that involved either. See, standardized testing tests many levels, from the very basic up to the very difficult. Most kids won't be able to answer them all, and that is the point. Some kids will, and again, that is the point--the are a measure of where your child stands at that point and time. She's also looking at the results wrong. The tests are not there to garner material for her lesson plans, they are there to see if the students are working at grade level. If every student in her class performed below grade level, well, that would tell her something wouldn't it. It doesn't tell her that the material in section 3 on page 12 is something she should teach, it tells her that her students aren't grasping what she is teaching. I bet if someone came to her and complained that students in 4th grade couldn't read, she would fall back on her standardized tests and say "see, they were fine here...".

This is not a great blog.

Where did you get your teaching creditials and how long have you been a teacher????

 

[jodifla]

Then look at the NJ university reading expert I posted. Same results.

I'm sorry, you linked readability-score.com, that is a UK site.

Plunderbund appears to be another grass roots, anti government webletter.

 

[jodifla]

More poor consequences from standardized testing, from testimony in Illinois:

http://mikkelstoraasli.blogspot.com/2015/02/testifying-on-parcc-in-springfield.html

"My name is Mikkel Storaasli and I am the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction at Leyden High Schools, located right next to O’Hare Airport. We have been 1 computing device-to-1 student district for three years, and we plan on implementing the computer based PARCC at the ninth grade level at both of our high schools. I would like to comment on the unique impact of the PARCC Assessment at the high school level.As you probably know, there are two administrations of the PARCC assessment, one at the approximate 75% point of the school year (the PBA) and the other at the 90% point of the year (the EOY)The PBA has 5 units (3 language arts and 2 math), and the EOY has 4 units (2 language Arts and 2 math)According to the test administration manual that we have recently received, the amount of time that the we must allow for testing, from the time the student enters the room until the time the next unit can be started are:

• PBA Language Arts (3 Units): 105 minutes, 120 minutes, and 90 minutes
• PBA Mathematics (2 units): 120 minutes and 105 minutes
• EOY Language Arts (2 units): 90 minutes and 90 minutes
• EOY Mathematics (2 units): 110 minutes and 105 minutes

This is a total of 935 minutes, or about 15 and a half hours of time spent in a testing room.We also have approximately 60 students who receive extended time accommodations. Each of those nine sections could take a full day for those students: that’s nine full days of testing for students with some of the greatest needs.The unique structure of the traditional high school day means that the 105 minutes spent on that first of five PARCC language arts units does not only impact the student’s language arts class. It will necessarily bleed over into other college preparatory core subject areas like mathematics, science, or social studies.

 

[Happy Snowman]

More poor consequences from standardized testing, from testimony in Illinois:

http://mikkelstoraasli.blogspot.com/2015/02/testifying-on-parcc-in-springfield.html

"My name is Mikkel Storaasli and I am the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction at Leyden High Schools, located right next to O’Hare Airport. We have been 1 computing device-to-1 student district for three years, and we plan on implementing the computer based PARCC at the ninth grade level at both of our high schools. I would like to comment on the unique impact of the PARCC Assessment at the high school level.As you probably know, there are two administrations of the PARCC assessment, one at the approximate 75% point of the school year (the PBA) and the other at the 90% point of the year (the EOY)The PBA has 5 units (3 language arts and 2 math), and the EOY has 4 units (2 language Arts and 2 math)According to the test administration manual that we have recently received, the amount of time that the we must allow for testing, from the time the student enters the room until the time the next unit can be started are:

• PBA Language Arts (3 Units): 105 minutes, 120 minutes, and 90 minutes
• PBA Mathematics (2 units): 120 minutes and 105 minutes
• EOY Language Arts (2 units): 90 minutes and 90 minutes
• EOY Mathematics (2 units): 110 minutes and 105 minutes

This is a total of 935 minutes, or about 15 and a half hours of time spent in a testing room.We also have approximately 60 students who receive extended time accommodations. Each of those nine sections could take a full day for those students: that’s nine full days of testing for students with some of the greatest needs.The unique structure of the traditional high school day means that the 105 minutes spent on that first of five PARCC language arts units does not only impact the student’s language arts class. It will necessarily bleed over into other college preparatory core subject areas like mathematics, science, or social studies.

So??? That is not quite 3 days of testing....pretty much what we did back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and we did the yearly testing. For the kids that need expanded time, well, it is what it is. Is there ever a question when these same kids miss an entire class to take a test in a resource center or whatever? I'm sure that is far more than 15 days over the course of a school year....

 

[undertheradar]

Then look at the NJ university reading expert I posted. Same results.

Funny, Russ Walsh is on staff at Rider, not an instructor. Why he would commute from Morrisville,PA to Lawrence Township, NJ makes no sense.

His favorite source for his webletter is Mershon. Here's where it all falls apart, Walsh is director of Walsh Mershon Consultants, a 1 employee firm located in Morrisville, PA. His links are to more anti-testing, anti-Common Core web letters and sites. I do give him credit, his is the first grass roots source you have listed that didn't have a direct contribution link on it.

 

[undertheradar]

More poor consequences from standardized testing, from testimony in Illinois:

http://mikkelstoraasli.blogspot.com/2015/02/testifying-on-parcc-in-springfield.html

"My name is Mikkel Storaasli and I am the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction at Leyden High Schools, located right next to O’Hare Airport. We have been 1 computing device-to-1 student district for three years, and we plan on implementing the computer based PARCC at the ninth grade level at both of our high schools. I would like to comment on the unique impact of the PARCC Assessment at the high school level.As you probably know, there are two administrations of the PARCC assessment, one at the approximate 75% point of the school year (the PBA) and the other at the 90% point of the year (the EOY)The PBA has 5 units (3 language arts and 2 math), and the EOY has 4 units (2 language Arts and 2 math)According to the test administration manual that we have recently received, the amount of time that the we must allow for testing, from the time the student enters the room until the time the next unit can be started are:

• PBA Language Arts (3 Units): 105 minutes, 120 minutes, and 90 minutes
• PBA Mathematics (2 units): 120 minutes and 105 minutes
• EOY Language Arts (2 units): 90 minutes and 90 minutes
• EOY Mathematics (2 units): 110 minutes and 105 minutes

This is a total of 935 minutes, or about 15 and a half hours of time spent in a testing room.We also have approximately 60 students who receive extended time accommodations. Each of those nine sections could take a full day for those students: that’s nine full days of testing for students with some of the greatest needs.The unique structure of the traditional high school day means that the 105 minutes spent on that first of five PARCC language arts units does not only impact the student’s language arts class. It will necessarily bleed over into other college preparatory core subject areas like mathematics, science, or social studies.

Leyden High Schools, East and West, total student population around 3500 over 4 grades on 2 campuses. Every student is provided a Google Chromebook. This is a full technology based educational program complaining about the less than 2% of students who require additional time to complete the tests.

 

[nugov2]

Gee, more than 10 percent:

http://www.njherald.com/story/28265967/2015/03/04/41-in-some-schools-refuse-parcc-testing

41% in some schools refuse PARCC testing
Posted: Mar 04, 2015 10:04 PM EST Updated: Mar 04, 2015 10:04 PM EST

By DIANA GOOVAERTS

dgoovaerts@njherald.com

As PARCC testing kicks into full gear this week in school districts across the state, parents opposing the new exams are making themselves heard by pouring a veritable avalanche of refusal letters into local schools.

After an initially calm response to the test, Superintendent Brian Fogelson said North Warren Regional High School parents began flooding the administration with refusal letters last week. The result, he said, is that 41 percent of test-eligible students have refused, including 73 percent of students in grade 11.

“The refusals really started to develop about a week and a half ago because we started with very few,” Fogelson said Wednesday. “People got on the bandwagon. I think that parents are trying to make a statement that they feel their children are being over-tested.”

I said nationwide and 41% of one district that is what 300 students give 120 kids opting out in grade 11 at one school. That is still nothing compared to the whole of the nation.

 

[aprilgail]

The budget and support for sports is WAY WAY higher at our local public schools than any other extra curricular, including the arts. In fact, sports players can miss school days for games and competitions and other groups cannot. I know your kid(s) benefited from golf, and that is great, but many others benefit from band or theater or culinary, and they are no where near as funded as sports.

Exactly! Band kids have to sell things and their parents have to write out a check for them to be involved- for the high school drama club it means writing out a 150.00 check if your kids want to be in it. Sports kids-free ride.

 

[AnAmericanInDisney]

Instead of developing all these new standardized tests, why don't they just use the SATs and ACTs for middle school and beyond for Math and English? They're tried and true. Use the SAT subject tests in high school for the other classes. Don't even test the little kids. Anxiety probably plays a large part in their performance at younger ages.

 

[undertheradar]

Instead of developing all these new standardized tests, why don't they just use the SATs and ACTs for middle school and beyond for Math and English? They're tried and true. Use the SAT subject tests in high school for the other classes. Don't even test the little kids. Anxiety probably plays a large part in their performance at younger ages.

"Evil Corporations" own these tests.

 

[Happy Snowman]

Exactly! Band kids have to sell things and their parents have to write out a check for them to be involved- for the high school drama club it means writing out a 150.00 check if your kids want to be in it. Sports kids-free ride.

That is not true....every school I know of charges sports kids a fee for participation--I WISH we only paid $150....actually, most of the in-school activities, like Drama club at our school didn't have to pay anything to be a part of that. They did change that the last year our youngest was in high school but their activity fee is still far less then what the sports kids paid.

 

[nugov2]

Exactly! Band kids have to sell things and their parents have to write out a check for them to be involved- for the high school drama club it means writing out a 150.00 check if your kids want to be in it. Sports kids-free ride.

Not true. Fotball players here pay to play.

 

[Happy Snowman]

Instead of developing all these new standardized tests, why don't they just use the SATs and ACTs for middle school and beyond for Math and English? They're tried and true. Use the SAT subject tests in high school for the other classes. Don't even test the little kids. Anxiety probably plays a large part in their performance at younger ages.

A lot of states do this for high schools. Those tests are not appropriate for junior high/middle school tests. Schools have ALWAYS paid for standardized testing from some corporation or another.

 

[okeydokey]

That is not true....every school I know of charges sports kids a fee for participation--I WISH we only paid $150....actually, most of the in-school activities, like Drama club at our school didn't have to pay anything to be a part of that. They did change that the last year our youngest was in high school but their activity fee is still far less then what the sports kids paid.

But the thing is, no matter how many times you google, just because every school you know charges, doesn't mean that every school charges. You can only know about the schools your kids attended in MN and maybe a hand full of others, but your experience is not the universal experience and you can not possibly backup these unfounded claims.

 

[undertheradar]

Exactly! Band kids have to sell things and their parents have to write out a check for them to be involved- for the high school drama club it means writing out a 150.00 check if your kids want to be in it. Sports kids-free ride.

This is going to vary wildly. In CA, my son sold ads for the game program and banners surrounding the field. They went out in groups and sold discount cards. They worked Summer sports camp and youth football camp to help raise funds for the program. This was on top of passing league fees, conditioning fees, football locker rental , 2 game jerseys at $275 each, and on and on.

Here in the Midwest, my soccer playing daughter has a fee of $50, which is waived for those on free or reduced lunches.

 

[Happy Snowman]

But the thing is, no matter how many times you google, just because every school you know charges, doesn't mean that every school charges. You can only know about the schools your kids attended in MN and maybe a hand full of others, but your experience is not the universal experience and you can not possibly backup these unfounded claims.

Read back, I'm not the only one....there has yet to be someone on this thread that said that their kids don't pay a fee to play high school sports....

 

[penn19]

Funny, Russ Walsh is on staff at Rider, not an instructor. Why he would commute from Morrisville,PA to Lawrence Township, NJ makes no sense.

His favorite source for his webletter is Mershon. Here's where it all falls apart, Walsh is director of Walsh Mershon Consultants, a 1 employee firm located in Morrisville, PA. His links are to more anti-testing, anti-Common Core web letters and sites. I do give him credit, his is the first grass roots source you have listed that didn't have a direct contribution link on it.

The distance between Morrisville and Lawrence Township is I believe under 10 miles. Not very far.

 

[undertheradar]

The distance between Morrisville and Lawrence Township is I believe under 10 miles. Not very far.

Yes, but how about comparing the actual drive time.

 

[penn19]

Read back, I'm not the only one....there has yet to be someone on this thread that said that their kids don't pay a fee to play high school sports....

Our kids don't pay a fee to participate in High School sports. But this is Texas, home of the 60 million dollar HIGH school football stadium that you know, started to have foundation issues after a year of being open and they couldn't use. You have to pay to join the booster club for each sport but that isn't mandatory, just encouraged.