Friends of EPATA May 2012 update

Dear Friends of EPATA,

It has been a while since I have contacted you. I fell in January while on a trip to help my son move. I required shoulder surgery for which I still am being treated…but I can now type.

I hope to keep you informed of current trends in the actions that are working to eliminate the use of high-stakes testing locally, statewide and across the country. You can always check out our blog site at www.testingabuse.blogspot.com for some insights past and present.

As you may know there is a national rebellion brewing against high-stakes testing -surprisingly supported by the state that gave birth to the testing principles behind NCLB: Texas. But there is much more. I will periodically update you on the highlights of this movement as well as the attempt to thrust Common Core Standards into our classrooms as ‘the’ solution to America’s educational woes. Among other things Common Core will increase the focus on testing-further narrowing our states curriculum to only what they believe can be tested.

If you have been reading the Fresno Bee you may have noticed the significant increase in editorials, commentaries and letters to the editor that deal with the impact on students and teachers of the high-stakes testing culture and associated ramifications in our schools. Students, parents, educators and legislators are fed up with the insanity of this testing mania and are speaking out more than ever. Here are some highlights:

-Inspired by a statement endorsed by more than 360 Texas school boards, FairTest, 12 other organizations, and prominent individuals have drafted a national Resolution on High-Stakes Testing.
To sign, go to http://timeoutfromtesting.org/nationalresolution/ - where you can also obtain print versions to share with your organization(s).In just its first day, the National Testing Resolution has attracted over 100 organizations and more than 2000 individuals!

-438 Texas School Districts Endorse Resolution Critical of High-Stakes Testing
http://www.kdhnews.com/news/story.aspx?s=66308

-Congressman Proposes NCLB Testing Moratorium -- Calls Law "Complete and Utter Failure"
http://diamondbar.patch.com/articles/congressman-pushes-to-halt-no-child-left-behind-testing-standards

-How High-Stakes Testing Affects Kids -- Student Video
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/student-video-how-high-stakes-tests-affect-kids/2012/05/09/gIQAsKt6DU_blog.html

-Parents Rebel Against Standardized Tests -- Nationally Syndicated Column
http://www.southernstandard.com/section/9/article/8169/

-Fixing the Fixation on Testing (this also ran as a full-page ad in several political publications)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/randi-weingarten/fixing-the-fixation-on-te_b_1287495.html

-Plotting the Timely Death of Standardized Testing in Public Schools
http://ecosalon.com/plotting-the-timely-death-of-standardized-testing-in-our-public-schools/

-Stop Testing Madness; Create Culture to Truly Prepare Students
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/05/17/3245511/stop-testing-madness-create-culture.html 

-An Interview with Yong Zhao -- High-Stakes Tests Do More Harm Than Good
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in-dialogue/2012/05/yong_zhao_in_conversation.html

 -Beware Corporations Lobbying, Then Profiting from Education Reform
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2012/may/07/sandra-reinhard-beware-corporations-lobbying/

-Billionaire Donors Drive Anti-Teacher, Pro-Testing Education "Reform" Agenda
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/05/20/1092800/-Billionaire-donors-drive-anti-teacher-pro-testing-education-reform-agenda

 I look forward to resuming our EPATA meetings before the beginning of the 2012-13 school year so as to have a place to express our concerns and discuss some action steps. Feel free to e-mail me regarding your response to any of these posts. Let me know your ideas regarding the direction you think EPATA should move in 2012-13.

Regards,

Rog