“Opt-out is potentially a political movement that needs to be reckoned with,” said Donald A. Ogilvie, a former superintendent in Buffalo and Erie 1 BOCES. “As the numbers grow, it adds to the movement.”
Added to the mix is a new state education commissioner, who already has made it clear she sees the opt-out movement as a problem and intends to work with districts to put an end to it.
Whether that will come with mere persuasion, or a hammer, is yet to be seen.
“We have an issue we have to address,” Commissioner MaryEllen Elia told educators in Sweet Home last month. “The opt-out issue is very problematic.”
...
In meetings with parents and educators in Sweet Home, she suggested that she will first take a more persuasive approach, communicating the purpose and value of the tests to teachers, and recruiting them to get the message out to parents.
She took a similar approach when she was superintendent of the Hillsborough County schools in Florida, hosting a series of community forums prior to the implementation of the Common Core.
“We have to get to the point that people are accepting,” she said.
She also mentioned the possibility of repercussions.
“The law exists so that there could be ramifications,” Elia said.
Ah, yes - the fabled "communication" of the importance of testing, followed by "ramifications" if the communication attempts don't win parents over.
That's where this is heading - Elia has already shown that her idea of compromise is that other groups come to her side of the issues.
Frankly, I think whatever "ramifications" Elia and her merry men and women in reform in Albany cook up will come back to bite them, but we'll have to see.
The problem for Ms. Elia, of course, is that the very people she sees as "problems" members of the State Legislature see as "constituents."
ReplyDeleteIf the battle becomes one between NYSED and 250,000 "opt-outing" parents who need to be disciplined and State Legislators and 250,000 people who need to be courted as "voters" exactly who do you think will win that fight? Not Ms. Elia who has a "voter base" of exactly 17 people called "Regents."
This lady was hired to resurrect the Common Core and Endless Testing Curriculum favored by the corporatists. If she does anything close to what she is hinting at she will last less than one year in this position. Tuschie is done at the end of this year and Heastie and the Assembly need to run for office again a year from November.
ReplyDeleteThe tests have value. That is definitely news.
ReplyDeleteAbigail Shure
Remember, she's Cuomo's mouthpiece as he/she destroys public education
ReplyDeleteLet's not forget that the NYS board of regents unanimously appointed this woman.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to Elia taking on all the Opt Out Mommas of Long Island who aren't drowning in poverty and are paying attention. Better fasten your wig Mrs. Doubtfire cause this one is going to get ugly fast.
ReplyDeleteThis movement can be stopped. If she does anything improper all hell will break loose.
ReplyDeleteElia was brought in to essentially be the front line for the coward and bought-over Cuomo, and our Marie Antoinette Tusch, to "repackage" the Common Core and help parents to "better understand" it.
ReplyDeleteIt's going to be very interesting when she brings her "communications (the carrot) and ramifications (the stick)" argument to the people of New York and 250,000 people tell her what she can do with Common Core.
Ms Elia is the Frankenstein that Cuomo, Tisch, and the New York State Board of Regents unleashed upon the people of New York.
The privatizers will be taking her back in a matter of months, flipping her over to another state, as another state flips someone else to New York.
Cuomo playing the privatization movement's hand...card by card.
But what Cuomo does not see in this deck of cards...there is no "Get out of Jail Free".
DeleteHe deserves to rot in prison for his crimes against the people of New York.
But what about Preet? He'll fix EVERYTHING,Squashdarnit McGillicuddy!
ReplyDeleteGiven that the school districts did what they were required to do by federal and state law -- which is "administer" the tests -- they did NOT and have not run afoul of the law and there should be no possible sanctions taken against them. In addition to which, Elia cannot make up sanctions out of thin air; she is constrained by our state legislature, and I do believe that our state legislators (Cathy Nolan, Jim Tedisco, George Latimer, Ed Ra, Al Graf, etc., to name a few who immediately come to mind) are against legislating such sanctions. And the education agency should not be legally permitted to sanction the parents for exercising their legal rights. So... given that there has been no legal wrongdoing, how can there be punishment???? I say it's time to make sure every one of us alerts our state representatives of Elia's sentiments and intentions -- and that they stop her immediately.
ReplyDeleteGo to hell, Elia.
ReplyDelete