No legislation has passed yet, but lawmakers in several states are considering bills, with overwhelming popular and bipartisan support, that would change the course of state departments of education and bring about a delay in many new school reform programs, including the implementation of Common Core-inspired curricula and certain uses of high-stakes online tests.
Democrats in New York’s Senate, including Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Assembly Education Committee Chairwoman Cathy Nolan, called for a delay Tuesday in the use of standardized test data in making high-stakes decisions, the State of Politics blog reports. The high goals set by the Common Core standards, they said, make it both “prudent” and “wise” to put the brakes on any high-stakes testing.
Then, a few hours later, Republicans joined Democrats in a short statement, which said, basically, the same thing. Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos, Senate Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein, and Senate Education Committee Chairman John Flanagan wrote:
Unless the Board of Regents acts to alleviate the concerns of parents, teachers and other educators, we call on the Regents to delay the use of Common Core tests for high-stakes decisions about teachers, principals and students for a minimum of two years. … During this time, [the state’s Education Department] should continue to develop curricula aligned with higher standards and assist local school districts in developing their own curricula so teachers can successfully implement higher learning standards and help students reach their maximum potential.
That is, elected representatives are calling on education officials to pay attention to what people are telling them and get out of the business of degrading teachers’ ability to teach. People want teachers to get back to the business of providing a high-quality education. Bravo, Mr Republican Leader.
In Maryland, some also call for putting on the brakes
“We need to take a slow and informed approach before deciding to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on a program that is untested,” said Maryland Delegate Michael Smigiel, Republican of Cecil County. Mr Smigiel is sponsoring legislation, HB 0076, which would repeal not just the use of standardized testing for high-stakes decisions, but the whole Common Core attached to it.
“The claim is that there are 44 states out there that are currently adopting this, but actually there is less than half of that now.” he told the House Ways & Means Committee on Feb 5. Many of the states that formerly supported Common Core are now backing off, he claimed, due to problems with the implementation of the new standards, Maryland Reporter.com reported.
Those supporting Common Core have ignored what parents, teachers and unions wanted, he also claimed, just as lawmakers said in New York. Limiting input from key stakeholders in education, as has been done with the Common Core and high-stakes testing roll-out, also limits school boards in making adjustments that meet students’ and teachers’ needs. That, in turn, “stifles teacher creativity,” Mr Smigiel said, and it breeds disgust on the part of children for going to school.
“I see the children coming from the school across the street from me and they are not happy,” writes Mary Anne Cole in commenting on the Maryland Reporter.com piece. “They are sullen and disrespectful of the crossing guard. The children used to look happy.”
Illinois lawmakers also seek delay
A resolution in the Illinois House, HR 0543, is now making its way through the Rules Committee.
The resolution was introduced by Rep Dwight Kay, Republican of Springfield, and would urge the Illinois State Board of Education to delay the implementation of the new Common Core Standards and request that the State Board of Education and General Assembly work together to create a viable plan to provide funding to school districts that need improvements and modernizations to comply with the new Common Core Standards and tests being developed by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers.
Yep. It’s going to cost Illinois a lot of money to upgrade their computer systems to be in compliance with PARCC’s needs.
Computers aren’t a bad thing, necessarily, as they can open great learning opportunities for students. Baltimore County Public Schools announced an initiative recently that seeks to put computers in the hands of every student, a so-called 1-to-1 program, the Baltimore Sun reports.
“We can learn so much more than looking through multiple textbooks. On the Internet it is right there,” the Sun quoted one fifth grader as saying.
But when hundreds of millions of dollars will be required to upgrade school-based computers just for standardized tests and not for student learning, legislators, parents, and other concerned citizens are going to speak up. Of course, nobody’s listening, are they? From the Illinois resolution:
It is inconceivable to require districts to incur costs to upgrade schools in their respective districts because the State Board of Education unilaterally made the decision to move to the Common Core Standards, without counsel from local school districts, without a strong Statewide informational campaign about the Common Core Standards, and without performing a cost analysis for local school districts and the State …
Editorial
I have never heard such a unanimous rising of public voices in opposition to a change in schools, and I think it’s time school leaders consider the fact that all these people could not possibly be wrong.
It’s time to listen or get out of the business of education. Schools are the business of the public, and the professionals who work in those buildings have important work to do. Washington and state departments of education need to switch from a leadership role to a supportive role—now.