"A child's learning is the function more of the characteristics of his classmates than those of the teacher." James Coleman, 1972

Monday, March 02, 2015

PARCC should be called into question, not Peggy Robertson

The Denver Post ran a short article about our hero Peggy Robertson that ignored the reasons for the opt-out movement. It is at http://www.denverpost.com/News/Local/ci_27618118/Educators-refusal-to-give-PARCC-called-into-question-by-district?source=infinite
Look at the comments, heavily pro-Peggy.

My letter:

To the editor:

"Educator's refusal to give PARCC called into question by district," (March 1) fails to present the reasons for the success of the opt-out movement. Here are a few: (1) students are being tested more than anytime in history. The tests have bled huge amounts of class-time from real instruction. (2) The new tests have no scientific validity: No studies have shown that the new tests will be helpful, and no studies are planned. (3) The cost of the current testing program is gigantic, especially because the tests must be given online. Billions are being wasted that are desperately needed for legitimate educational purposes.

All educators understand the need for assessment, but the current nonstop and unresearched approach to assessment is wrong.  It is PARCC that should be called into question by the Aurora district, not Peggy Robertson.

Stephen Krashen, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
University of Southern California

No comments:

Post a Comment