Federal Bill May Limit Standardized Testing?

[Chris_Wendt]

LI Congressman Steve Israel has introduced a bill that would allow states to opt out of half of the current Common Core testing, or even more, depending upon the performance of individual school districts.

Quoting the Newsday article:

"Dozens of teachers and parents joined Rep. Steve Israel in Commack Sunday for a rally to support a bill aimed at reducing standardized testing in schools.
Israel (D-Huntington) introduced the Tackling Excessive Standardized Testing Act Sept. 18 -- written by 19 Long Island superintendents and a handful of teachers -- which would permit states to opt-in to an alternative testing schedule from third to eighth grades.

If passed, the bill would allow schools to cut testing by half, Israel said, from two tests each year -- one in math and one in English language arts -- to one each year, alternating between the two. Public schools that rank at the 15th percentile or above statewide could go to a four-year testing cycle, with English language arts tests given at the end of grades 3 and 7 and math exams at the end of grades 4 and 8. Changes to science testing for fourth- and eighth-graders -- as well as high school Regents exams -- would not occur under this bill."

Here is link to the source article:LINK

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This represents still more federal interference in state education policy, on top of CC, RTT, NCLB, etc.  
It also represents direct Congressional meddling in the educational process, which is supposed to be handled by education professionals, i.e. those in Departments of Education, and School Districts.

Disturbing.

Chris Wendt

[rr]

Dozens? Seriously? The poor reporter was probably hoping for another 60's like mob of angry people with funny chants and some great signs about how the Common Core is ruining the US - I would have loved to see their face when 'dozens' of people came out to support this bit of nonsense. The picture alone is hilarious - it probably took some time to get an angle that showed a decent amount of people. Looks like more political posturing to me...so instead of the a whole 2 grueling "high stakes" tests, our children will only be subjected to 1?

You often end your threads with a one-word sentence summarizing your thoughts...here's my effort.

Yawn.

[Chris_Wendt]

I thought it was a little self-serving to state that the bill was drafted with the help of 19 superintendents (and a handful of teachers) but there was no listing, not even on of Newsday's ubiquitous links to some database, as to who these 19 superintendents are.

If the bill passes the House, then there will be 124 superintendents who could claim to have helped write it; if the bill dies in the committee or is defeated on the floor, then those 19 co-authors have plausible deniability ("not ME!") about it. I wonder if "a handful of teachers" means five? What school(s), district(s), grade level(s), and subject(s) do they all teach? How were those teachers selected? Was there on open casting call, or were they staunch "Opt-out" supporters or members?

Should an school superintendent, or organization of school superintendents, be spending taxpayer-funded time writing legislation to prospectively be imposed upon the Regents? The Commissioner and SED? Their own Boards of Education ( I mean without first receiving approval and direction from their own Board of Ed via a resolution or something)?

Anarchy!

Chris Wendt