Friday, March 14, 2014

A Letter from a parent to New Bedford’s School Committee & the Superintendent of Schools


I often hear that parental voices are needed in our educational system. Your response to this letter will determine whether or not you truly mean to include the voices of families in the reform of New Bedford’s schools.Of course, by “include,” I don’t mean acting as tour guides in schools or serving on advisory boards where one’s decision-making power is only symbolic.

 

Last year, on the day that MCAS was to be administered, my son was sick. He insisted that he wanted to attend school to take the test. He opened the test booklet and proceeded to answer test items when his teacher noticed that something was wrong. She sent him to the nurse, who called me. She stated: “he is clearly not well, but he opened the test booklet and risks having his test invalidated if he is sent home. We’ll have him sit then send him back to the classroom to take the test. After the test we’ll send him home.” I was appalledUltimately, my son returned to take the MCAS, despite the early onset of the flu and my resistance. He felt compelled to test given the pressuresI don’t mean to insinuate that nurses in our schools are incompetent. I think they perform quite well and would perform stellar if the system was adequately funded. What I do mean to say is that the regime of high-stakes testing in our schools is deeply disturbing and inhumane!

 

I write this letter to express my intent to opt my children out of high-stakes testing, whether the test is the MCAS,PARCC, or any other hip acronym that comes along in the shape of a high-stakes test designed to oppress, standardize, anaesthetize, and ultimately suffocate students. I publicize this letter because it’s not only my children that concern me. My children usually do well. High scores on high-stakes tests do not prove that true learning is occurring. Countless educational research has concluded that the use of high-stakes testing narrows the curriculum and encourages test preparation as a substitute for engagedlearning. High-stakes tests are also deviance-producing mechanisms. A number of school systems across the country have been exposed for cheating and unethical practices due to the pressures of high-stakes testing. They are, in short, becoming Enron. Furthermore, our continuous focus on scoring well evades more important public dialogue about funding inequities and the root cause of educational disengagement – poverty. Allowing testing corporations to continue reaping billions of dollars in profitfrom public education only exacerbates the problem. Any administrator, school committee member, or school functionary still standing before students, teachers, and families touting the virtues of high-stakes testing should be ashamed. And, if you know that it’s wrong but remain silent, you’re complicit in educational malpractice.

 

Furthermore, subjecting English Language Learners to the MCAS and the PARCC after only having been in the country for one year is immoral. Emergent bilingual students are 9 times more likely to drop out of high school than their peers. These tests are part of the problem. In addition, a high percentage of students with disabilities are not meeting graduation requirements as a result of these tests.

 

Countless educational researchers have concluded that measuring teacher effectiveness and school quality through high-stakes test scores is unreliable and unethical.Evaluating teachers in this manner does very little to improve the profession. Rather, it encourages great teachers to resign.

 

I strongly believe in accountability and high-expectations of all students, teachers and administratorsHowever, high-stakes tests are about securing low expectations. Portfolios,performance based, and other forms of authentic assessments are more educationally sound. Standardized tests also have their place, but they should not be in the form of high-stakes.

 

I encourage readers to read the ‘Massachusetts Statement Against High-Stakes Testing’ [http://matestingstatement.wordpress.com/statement/]endorsed by countless professors in the state, myselfincluded. As MCAS is imposed on our schools next week and the rest of the school year, I encourage parents to write letters opting students out and requesting an in-school alternative to high-stakes testing. If we’re truly interested in ending bullying in schools, let’s end the bullying of high stakes testing. If families really have a “choice,” they must be allowed to exercise the choice to opt-out.

 

Join us for a forum and community dialogue on high-stakes testing and opting-out at 5:00 p.m. on April 9 - Whaling National Historical Park Museum – 33 Williams St. Jointhe S.E. MA and RI Coalition to Save Our Schools to continue the dialogue and organization to reclaim public education in the interest of all families. For more information contact ricardorosa1973@yahoo.com orcheoso@verizon.net or visit Facebook.com/SouthEastMARIOptOut.

 

look forward to a public response.

 

 

Ricardo D. Rosa

 

44 comments:

Anonymous said...

You said it ...and very eloquently ...Amen!

Anonymous said...

So well written and so true - let's see how many concerned parents turn out for your meeting. I hope you have a "packed" house.

Anonymous said...

I can only hope that the people who are making the big bucks will get to read your post. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

MCAS is the law. Rosa should take a constitutional government class and leave the social justice classes alone.

Anonymous said...

MCAS is the law? That's all you can offer? It's not the law for private schools, or Catholic Schools, and some charter schools...etc..plenty of parents are OPTING OUT across the country on these high stakes tests. (The people that know how they have DESTROYED public ed in America)

Anonymous said...

Offer? I'm not offering a fool's crusade after a white whale.

Anonymous said...

Isn't Rosa connected to Third Eye?

Anonymous said...

Is his son planning on attending a community college? MCAS is a graduation requirement.

Anonymous said...

This parent has the right to refuse her child to take the PARCC test. PARCC testing is not a law. The superintendent cleverly avoided the question at the sc meeting. She didn't know if parents could opt their child out. The answer given was we didn't choose that option. What she never said was parents have the right to REFUSE to allow their child to take the test. More time on foolish testing means less time on actual learning.

Anonymous said...

Grades 3-8 have no reason to take the test. It is not a requirement for promotion.

Anonymous said...

Colleges don't even ask what score you got on the MCAS.

Anonymous said...

Colleges do not ask for a student's score on the MCAS, true. However, a diploma is required for acceptance into college and you can't get a diploma without a proficient score or better on the MCAS. It's part of our educational system right now and until it changes, your opinion isn't going to be considered. As adults, we have to take high stakes exams for higher education, career licenses, etc. Students should be exposed to high stakes exams because it's the "real world.". FYI I am a high school teacher and both of my children did very well on their MCAS tests and were accepted to top ranked colleges and universities. As parents, you need to explain to your children the purpose and importance of high stakes testing; unless you haven't done your homework and understand this yourself.

Anonymous said...

Most of the tests given in New Bedford are a waste of time and really don't measure a students actual learning because most of the tests are given under less than optimum conditions.



Anonymous said...

My child also did very well on the high school MCAS tests...got the John and Abigail Adams Scholarship...blah blah blah...but I also don't pretend that every child at NBHS has the same support from home that he enjoyed. If high stakes tests are the "real world" why don't ALL students in EVERY type of school have to take them? Why do colleges accept students from schools that don't participate in the MCAS Test? Think about it a little bit harder. You may figure it out.

Anonymous said...

Lang's crusade is actually what got us here. The time and resources he wasted probably made the 5-10% difference between level 3 and level 4. Level 3 is not great but it would mean jobs of our unit members who are now suffering. Forgive me if I decline to opt in to the opt out movement, led by teachers not facing the sack. Comfortable positions allow for this. Real world is a little harsher.

Rosa is an academic and can theorize all day and seems to have less resolve than his son, if he thinks a few days of testing is going to scar someone for life. Unlike the Ivory Tower campus he works at, in our schools we actually know what abuse and scarring is and it isnt a booklet of math questions.

Opt your kid out of test day and they wont be catching up on learning, they will be sitting in an empty classroom. The school is structured around MCAS and uses its resources for that. Umass Law is structured towards the LSATs. Is that abuse? I took an 8 hour exam as part if my Masters. Am I scarred? Did the GRE hurt? Do radiation techs get qualified based on a diorama they make?

If the leadership at NBHS had attempted to live in the real world and do something crazy like develop a universal plan to get out of Level 3 two years ago, then maybe teachers wouldn't face the sack for % drops in MCAS.

Stop the insanity and race to the bottom with these foolish crusades. If you ask me, this obsession with MCAS as abuse is symptomatic of an expectation that schools become the parent and give these wonderful self affirming experiences to kids , in loco parentis. That's rubbish. That's your job. Ours to provide a top class education that meets the standards external powers are setting ( SAT , college entrance, and yes, MCAS).

Anonymous said...

FYI. You can get into college without a diploma as long as u have a GED.

Anonymous said...

GED is also a standardized test

Anonymous said...

Teachers aren't against tests, they are against the way they are being designed, distorted, and used to limit students futures rather than open the doors of opportunity.

Anonymous said...

To suggest MCAS is vital for elementary or secondary students is misguided. It implies two things: 1: those individuals who graduated prior to the MCAS testing system did not receive as "rigorous" an education as those graduated after it's inception and 2.those who took the test are better qualified for "real life" testing such as a GRE or an LSAT. This is ridiculous for two reasons: 1. The majority of students attending private and Catholic schools do not take the test yet an overwhelming number of these children go on to obtain advanced degrees and become successful professionals. This would imply that family involvement and socioeconomic status play a significant role in student achievement. 2. There is no data to support that MCAS or any other type of high stakes testing results in better preparation for tests such as the GRE, LSAT or MCAT. Just because MCAS is law doesn't mean it is beneficial ...remember the Jim Crow laws did not prove to be effective legislature ... This is why we teach history ... To learn from previous mistakes ...something to ponder...

Anonymous said...

MCAS & Jim Crow? I guess moving away from Third Reich analogies is progress here. That really is something to ponder. A century long system of laws that restricted some citizens' equality and a periodic public school test.

Actually, as absurd as the comparison is, we should consider that the most effective african american movements objected to the system and worked within defined legal channels to undermine it. In addition, a whole generation of black Americans went out and achieved and prevailed despite Jim Crow.

For example, while perusing Brown in the 1950s, the plaintiffs did not deny their children their schooling, despite the need for that schooling to change " with all deliberate speed."

This movement to opt out and refuse to engage with the test will directly harm our students long before testing ends. In fact,a t most, testing formulas will change or be diluted but will never go away.

Look around NBHS and see what administrators ignoring MCAS has done. It has let the wolf in the door and harmed our union members.



Anonymous said...

^don't like the blog? Are you being forced to read it? Go some place else if it's beneath your "high" standards. You might want to consider the Unger times.

Anonymous said...

^I'm sorry - I thought this was an open forum in which I offered a detailed and persuasively argued critique. As you state, I have high standards. Care to actually engage?

Anonymous said...

I don't agree to opting out of MCAS, but the rules and regulations tied to them leave questions in my mind. On the other hand, opting out of PARCC and the Common Core should happen! I believe it's a waste of money and will not prove anything, but will violate student and parental rights to privacy. Education is not a business and should not be run by businesses.

Conspiracy Theorist said...

I've always believed from Day 1 that MCAS was about money....businesses paid to make up the test, administer the program, publish the questionable stats....and moreover, to sell textbooks and programs that prepare students for THE TEST!! How did we poor pre-MCAS students ever survive in this world....??

Anonymous said...

WOW! You are definitely out of the loop. OF COURSE MCAS is being lead by BIG business. Those that actually have the money are looking for people who can pass the test. It's all about the bottom line, and who or what will cost them less.

Anonymous said...

I am not a history buff, and after reading the rebuttal to my last blog, I thought perhaps I had used an improper analogy. However, upon further thought, I am convinced that my analogy to the Jim Crow laws is fitting because of the ways in which high stake testing discriminate against limited English Proficient students and special needs students. Much like the Jim Crow laws discriminated against African Americans by stripping them of basic rights thereby limiting their full potential within a segregated society, high stakes testing limits the full potential of these two populations. As far as I know, Dr. Rosa is exercising his right within the law to affect change to an existing law he feels did not respect his own child's needs. (putting a test before the welfare of a student). He is doing what we hope all our parents would do - protecting his child. I suspect high stakes testing has more to do with teacher accountability than actually helping children learn. I am very much in favor of educator accountability and change but not do the detriment of the non-native English speakers and special education students who represent a large population of the NBPS. This is discriminatory and for that reason, I would strongly encourage parents to opt out of high stakes testing. Enjoy this beautiful day ... it will probably snow next week!

Anonymous said...

Are you for real? The person was explaining that test design companies are making money with sub par materials to prepare for their poorly designed tests(Mainly PEARSON)...People are NOT being hired for their MCAS scores. Plenty of students pass the darn test(given in 10th with 2 years left of learning to go)...and then they still need to take ZERO credit college courses! If the test was so essential for evidence of college success--wouldn't the need for ZERO credit coursework disprove that?

Anonymous said...

News Flash: Our kids have been harmed by the testing craze for years. Our elementary city kids have the least amount of Art, Music, and Phys Ed IN THE STATE. But, here's the new superintendent ready to spend millions on a Pearson reading program. Gee, that will really turn these kids on. In the surrounding communities children have specials every day--sometimes two a day. Why don't our kids deserve a full curriculum?

Anonymous said...

Youngest son - private (religious) school. NO MCAS. Enters top-ranked school. Honors all three years, now a senior with 3.8 - dean's list. It's done everyday.

Anonymous said...

Where there is a lot of the Arts, visual arts, music .... there are usually highly intelligent people. This explanation speaks volumes for the intelligence level of our administrators. Dull witted and incompetent fools!

Anonymous said...

Pia Durkin is Mayor Mitchell's Agent and the turnaround plan is the Removal Act(mass firings of teachers). Our departure in June will be emblazoned in everyone's mind as the Trail, or Fail, of Tears.

Anonymous said...

MCAS Scores are sent to colleges as part of a students high school transcript. While they might not be a make or break factor in acceptance, they are viewed as part of the "whole package" of educational performance in Mass.

Anonymous said...

Do you really think this test is worth anything..you don't judge students by a test such as this..
This is all about money and how can we make the rich , richer and their friends through the testing and all it entails.......

Anonymous said...

We need to have our students opt out of every standardized test...Galileo dibels.

Every single one.

Anonymous said...

I haven't heard one big idea from Pia that will address the elementary level (other than new reading texts)...all these dollars and positions are demanded for the high school. Our elementary kids are so deprived. It is awful.

Anonymous said...

^^
You haven't? Put a "fire in their bellies." Have your kids had their grit today?

Anonymous said...

Here is something for people to think about.....we as educators have been instructed to teach high order thinking skills, teach the common core standards, test kids, analyze data, pull intervention groups, just to name a few of our jobs, with the intention of preparing the children to be college ready right? Ok then where is our training in the common core standards? where is our professional development on analyzing data, creating rigorous lessons? Teachers are being evaluated on how well they do all these tasks yet we have never been trained on any of it....we have had workshops here and there that are offered but they are not mandatory and our professional development in this city we all know is a joke....which brings me back to my question of where is our training?.....I have no problem preparing children for their future, that is part of my job but I need to be trained and given the right resources to do so....when I am properly trained and given the right resources, the principals and the superintendent can then evaluate my teaching.....this also brings me to another questions I ponder.....we are suppose to get kids ready for college and then in turn colleges are suppose to get them ready for jobs in the real world, right?....well then the colleges that we went to, you know the teachers who are "in need of improvement", they can should be put under a microscope and made to answer for their numbers of successful students.....maybe colleges should be designated at levels to based on their students who have graduated and become successful in their jobs.....do you think the colleges would like that?

Anonymous said...

You speak of the lack of professional development and/or the poor quality when it is provided. Isn't there a high priced administrator in charge of professional development. You make a good point though. People I talk to can't believe what is going on in NB. I will be leaving to finish my career in another part of Mass.

Conspiracy theorist said...

Just like in the real world, a high price tag doesn't necessarily indicate high quality!

Anonymous said...

The professional development in the New Bedford schools is a waste of time and money. Other districts get weeks on this stuff. We get a few hours taught by people who have no concept of the material.

Anonymous said...

Are people finally waking up to the realities of what is going on? Hope so. The testing is all a scam to make the rich richer. People, the time to stand up is now. Our students are beyond stressed and so are Teachers. The tests are state-wide, but changes can be made. I have left the district and am much happier elsewhere. It is nice to actually be treated as a professional. Best wishes all!

Anonymous said...

Are people finally waking up to the realities of what is going on? Hope so. The testing is all a scam to make the rich richer. People, the time to stand up is now. Our students are beyond stressed and so are Teachers. The tests are state-wide, but changes can be made. I have left the district and am much happier elsewhere. It is nice to actually be treated as a professional. Best wishes all!

Anonymous said...

How about all the Teachers including myself that went to school with no standardized testing. Did we all turn out so bad? Are we all incompetent? Please, these high-stakes tests are the result of non-educational corporations realizing how much money they could make. It is all a joke.

Anonymous said...

The following is from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Schools (D.E.S.E) FAQ's for 2014.
If a student becomes sick during a test session and is unable to complete the session, must he or she be scheduled for a make-up session? A. Yes. Students who become ill mid-session need to be scheduled for a closely monitored make-up session to complete only the questions they have not yet answered. Students may not change answers or review responses to any questions that they answered before leaving the testing space.
That student could have been dismissed and continued where he/she left off.