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On May 23, the Community Education Council, or CEC, for District 20 voted to boycott stand alone “field test” questions on New York State standardized exams.
“Our children have just spent six days in April taking New York State standardized tests in English and Math, which was nearly double the time compared to last year, ” stated the council in a copy of the resolution sent to Bay Ridge Odyssey. “Whereas, this April’s exams included up to 30% field test questions, which were embedded to try out for future tests and do not count in children’s scores; however, they make the tests substantially longer, so that most children spent up to nine hours testing and children with IEPs up to eighteen hours testing over the six day period.”
CEC 20 members also cited the fact that “Pearson Publishing and NYSED have not asked parents’ permission to utilize our children as research subjects for Pearson’s financial benefit as a for-profit company.”
What do you think? Are Bay Ridge’s students being taken advantage of for private gain? Or, are “field test” questions reasonable? What about the amount of classroom time taken up by the longer exams?
The full resolution is below:
Resolution: In Support of Parents Boycott of Stand-Alone Field Tests
WHEREAS, our children have just spent six days in April taking New York State standardized tests in English and Math, which was nearly double the time compared to last year, and
Whereas, this April’s exams included up to 30% field test questions, which were embedded to try out for future tests and do not count in children’s scores; however, they make the tests substantially longer, so that most children spent up to nine hours testing and children with IEPs up to eighteen hours testing over the six day period, and
Whereas, Pearson Publishing and NYSED have not asked parents’ permission to utilize our children as research subjects for Pearson’s financial benefit as a for-profit company, and
Wheareas, eighth grade students will be preparing for Regents exams in June and will be losing valuable instructional time to stand-alone field tests.
Therefore, be it resolved, that Community Education Council District 20 finds it unacceptable that even more valuable classroom time be allocated to the administering of test questions and
Further resolved, that Community Education Council District 20 supports the parents’ boycott of the field tests, as there are no negative consequences for our schools or our children if they do not take these stand-alone tests.
Passed Unanimously on May 23, 2012