Once again, Bob Schaeffer of FairTest has done a great job of collecting news items about how parents, teachers, students and members of the public are fighting back against GERM, the Global Educational Rephorm (or DEform) Movement led by billionaires and hedge-fund capitalists.
As the public digests the implication of last week’s election results, there is increasing push back against the high-stake-testing status quo and the politicians who stubbornly embrace it in the face of ever-growing resistance (and evidence)!
Revolt Against High-Stakes Testing Escalates
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/11/12/revolt-against-high-stakes-standardized-testing-spreads/
Did Educators Lose in the Process of Obama Victory
http://www.alternet.org/education/obama-won-did-educators-lose-process?page=0%2C0
Time for a New Education Reform Agenda
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-Differences/2012/11/dear_deborah_well_obama_won.html
District Right to Opt-Out of Race to the Trough Competition
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/11/portland_public_schools_was_ri.html#
Time to Role Back “No Child Left Behind” — support from a libertarian foundation
http://www.chron.com/opinion/outlook/article/Time-to-roll-back-No-Child-Left-Behind-4024794.php
Data and Testing: Has Education Lost Its Focus?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rob-furman/standardized-tests_b_2041057.html
Why the Latest Rhetoric on Teacher Evaluation is Nonsense
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/11/13/the-newest-rhetoric-on-teacher-evaluation-and-why-it-is-nonsense/
see also new FairTest fact sheet “Why Teacher Evaluation Should Not Rely on Test Scores” –http://fairtest.org/sites/default/files/Teacher-Evaluation-FactSheet-10-12.pdf
Value-Added Doesn’t Work for Special Ed. Teachers
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/11/09/value-added-teacher-assessment-hit-by-council-for-exceptional-children/
Time on Testing: 738 Minutes in Three Weeks
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2012/11/11/time-on-testing-738-minutes-in-3-weeks/
Teaching to the Test Doesn’t Help Students — a New York City Council member chimes in
http://www.timesledger.com/stories/2012/45/weprin_all_2012_11_08_q.html
U.K Government Cracks Down on Pearson’s Dominance of Education — How about a similar investigation in the U.S.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9661465/Ofqual-to-crack-down-on-highly-structured-textbooks.html
Bob Schaeffer, Public Education Director
FairTest: National Center for Fair & Open Testing
ph- (239) 395-6773 fax- (239) 395-6779
cell- (239) 699-0468
web- http://www.fairtest.org
