Saturday, May 14, 2011

The New Normal: State Tests In Every Subject At Every Level

From the new teacher evaluation plan in the state of New York:

The regulations also outline plans to create new state tests by 2012-13, for middle school science and social studies, and ninth- and 10th-grade English, where none exist now.
If you're an English teacher in high school, as I am, you will now do nothing but test prep.

40% of your evaluations will be based on test scores.

How will they do that?

What will the system look like?

Will it be value-added?

Who knows?

Cuomo has been pushing this, his corporate backers wanted this, neither of them care one iota that this will make NY state schools into test prep factories or that teachers will now be held accountable using a test score evaluation system that nobody seems to know how to work.

I just called and left a message for Little Andy.

Here's the number, you can call and leave a message too:

(518) 474-8390

It won't do any good to change the current evaluation plan - when the unions agreed to it, that was the end of that.

But it is good to let Governor 77% know how you feel.

He's riding high now, but when parents get a look at what the new evaluation system will look like and how it will force teachers to engage in nothing but test prep all the time, he may not be riding at 77% any more.

Remember, people once liked Bloomberg's education policies too.

3 comments:

  1. What teacher, on earth, will survive such a system long term? They will have staffs of desparate, stressed out teachers in a constant state of terror. How,on earth, is this good for students, and education generally?

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's not - its meant to do exactly what you say it will do - create school staffs of desperate, stressed out teachers in a constant state of terror.

    Fear is the prime motivator of the neoliberal corporate governing class.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Cynical Non BelieverMay 14, 2011 at 4:19 PM

    Of course, some huge megatesting"edu"corporation will be making enormous profits from this testing venture. It's the new corporate fascism.

    ReplyDelete