Educators, parents urge commission to drop or delay new state standardized tests
JANUARY 28, 2015, 6:32 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2015, 7:46 PM
BY HANNAN ADELY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
JERSEY CITY — Parents and educators told a state education commission Wednesday that New Jersey should drop new state standardized tests, or to consider delaying them, given many problems they already present .
Speakers at a public forum held by Governor Christie’s commission on student testing repeatedly referred to preparations for the tests as having a negative effect on classroom learning and the tests themselves as badly constructed.
Christina Krauss, a member of the Ridgewood Board of Education and parent of an eighth grader, said the new tests put a burden on teachers and students and that test preparation was consuming classroom learning.
“Our children are not lab rats,” said Krauss, who was one of about 45 people who spoke at the forum at the Franklin L. Williams School. “They are curious, creative, individual learners who should be allowed to flourish.”
The tests, known as PARCC, will be required in grades 3-11 in math and reading this spring. State education staff have said the tests will provide useful information about students’ progress and needs as they prepare for college and career. But critics say they take too much time much time away from instruction, are too long and stressful and hamper learning in non-tested subjects.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/educators-parents-urge-commission-to-drop-or-delay-new-state-standardized-tests-1.1260069
