Sunday, March 18, 2012

The Casualties of Testing

The relentless testing that is invading and taking over America's classrooms is not without its casualties. The latest is Fordham's "Take Your Children to Work Day", scheduled for April 26, which had to be cancelled because it conflicted with New York State math tests. April and May used to be a time for school projects. Six years ago, I was invited to organize long community history projects in 13 Bronx schools that culminated in day long festivals involving parents, grandparents, as well as the entire staff of the schools (including security and custodial personnel). Such projects are now impossible. April is now TEST MONTH in New York State. No history. No trips. Nothing but Test Prep and in third grade, 6 straight days of testing!

If you want to slow down the Test Juggernaut, please sign and circulate our petition. These policies are being coordinated nationally by the US Dept of Education

"An imagination is a terrible thing to waste."

" http://dumpduncan.org/

1 comment:

Sue VanHattum said...

Valerie Strauss wrote a post about teachers in England refusing to give standardized tests. We need to stand up to testing in this country.