Bob Schaeffer’s Weekly Roundup of News on Resistance to Corporate EduTesting

Bob Schaeffer of FairTest has been compiling weekly summaries of news articles showing how folks all across the country are resisting the corporate agenda of test, test, test. Here is his latest one:

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The pushback against high-stakes testing continues to accelerate with more parents, teachers, students, administrators, and educational policy makers recognizing that the current approach has failed and an increased focus on the looming danger from Common Core assessments.

Virginia Supers Worry That School Grades Will Primarily Measure Student Poverty
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/va-superintendents-worry-new-grading-scale-will-measures-poverty-not-instruction/2013/06/26/d7ad7566-de68-11e2-948c-d644453cf169_story.html

Editorial: New Florida School Grading Standards Are a Set-up for Failure
http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/06/30/3475969/new-standards-dont-make-the-grade.html

Students, Parents and Teachers Consider Appealing Delayed NYC Test Scores
http://gothamschools.org/2013/06/26/with-regents-exam-scores-coming-in-attention-turns-to-appeals/

NY State Senator: Instill Lifelong Learning, Not Test-Taking in Students
http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130621/OPINION/130629723/1074

Testing Has Reached Its Limits For Some Minnesota Parents
http://www.twincities.com/education/ci_23563367/some-minnesota-parents-testing-has-reached-its-limits

Oklahoma Teachers Ask State to Invalidate All 2013 Test Scores
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/26/oklahoma-standardized-tests_n_3504730.html

How Pizza Helped Garfield High Teachers Resist Standardized Testing Overkill
http://crosscut.com/2013/07/02/education/115232/arnold-garfield-high-teacherss-inspiration-strikin/

Students Who Take Tougher Grad Tests Are More Likely to End Up in Jail
http://www.businessinsider.com/jail-more-likely-for-students-who-take-hard-finals-2013-7

The Trouble with Common Core
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/27_04/edit274.shtml

The Common Core Testing Nightmare That Awaits Us
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/randy-turner/the-common-core-nightmare_b_3521825.html

Will Common Core Assessment Focus Derail College and Career Readiness
http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2013/06/25/fp_barnwell_career.html

Oklahoma Pulls Out of Common Core Testing Consortium: Cites Volume of New Assessments
http://www.tulsaworld.com/article.aspx/State_pulling_out_of_standardized_testing_through_consortium/20130701_19_0_StateS605337?subj=1

Union Worried Testing Will Cause More to Turn Against Common Core
http://stateimpact.npr.org/florida/2013/07/01/union-worried-testing-could-cause-public-to-turn-on-common-standards/

Common Core Assessment Consortium to Delay Some New Tests By a Year
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2013/06/testing_group_delays_some_components_for_one_year.html

See FairTest Common Core Assessment Fact Sheet
http://www.fairtest.org/common-core-assessments-more-tests-not-much-better

Time for Education “Reform” Reset
http://educationopportunitynetwork.org/6252013-an-education-reset/

Connection Between Test Scores and College Performance is Tenuous
http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130630/OPINION/130639986
See FairTest’s List of More than 800 ACT/SAT Optional Schools
http://www.fairtest.org/university/optional

The Perils of Standardized Testing: Six Ways it Harms Learning
http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/the-perils-of-standardized-testing/

Test-Driven System Stifles Creativity Says Survey of U.S. Parents and Teachers
https://www.edsurge.com/n/2013-06-24-education-system-stifles-creativity-say-teachers-parents

Careful What You Want and How You Measure Getting It
http://www.golocalprov.com/news/julia-steiny-careful-what-you-want-how-you-measure-getting-it/

Defining Students, Teachers and Schools By a Number Does Not Improve Learning
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2013/06/i_was_once_defined_by_a_number.html

The Revolution Will Not Be Standardized
https://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/07/01-6

Finland’s Education Ambassador Spreads the Word About a Better Alternative
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/jul/01/education-michael-gove-finland-gcse

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