During the course of the Shelby County school year, schools have been excessively tested. This year, Shelby County Schools have been tested more than any other school district in Tennessee. These excessive number of standardized tests have taken away from learning time within the schools, and have caused a drop in grades and scores throughout the public school system; not to mention the physical, psychological, and emotional distress. With this petition, the students of the Shelby County Schools System and throughout the State of Tennessee are seeking out to resolve this issue. The problem with the testing within the public school systems is that there is no way to opt out of the tests.
The purpose of the policy is to provide an option for students to opt out of high-stake tests that are mandated by the school district or the school itself. This policy excludes the ability to opt out of Tennessee state mandated tests such as ACT, SAT, or TNReady tests. To be exempt, students must provide his/her score report from any college admission test of his/her choice. Another proposition is for the student’s scores to fall at or be above the Tennessee state average score for that test for the current calendar year, and the score report is verifiable through the testing company. Taking standardized tests takes away from learning time in the classroom. This petition is in alignment with the Fair Assessment Act. The policy is to be upheld by the Tennessee Public School System.Our main purpose is to allow students of Tennessee the option to opt out of district tests.
Updates
December 11, 2015
I have been reviewing the feedback provided by many of you regarding the impact of excessive testing on student well-being. These accounts reinforce the necessity of our proposal to reclaim valuable classroom time for actual instruction. My focus currently remains on refining our approach to ensure this remains a professional conversation with the relevant decision makers.
December 11, 2015
The momentum behind this call for educational reform has grown significantly. It is clear that the frustration regarding excessive testing in Shelby County resonates with many families across the state. This level of engagement provides a strong foundation as we move toward the next phase of our advocacy efforts.
22 Comments
I am a teacher in the state of TN. All we seem to be able to do is test and common assessments. After these, we still need to teach all the standards and test over them to make sure we have enough grades in the grade book. Please stop all this testing and assessing.
Being a concerned grandparent i feel like all the testing does nothing for everyday living . Get a job and see how well all the testing is applied in everyday living . Imuch rather see a young person know how to read .
The amount of testing in Arab is out of control! My daughter started middle school in Williamson county this school year. At least 20% of the time is spent testing. Imagine how much more learning could take place if we eliminated all the wasted time, energy, and money from this testing. I am a very disappointed parent!
The enormous amount of testing taking place in the school system is taking to much time away from instruction and is adding stress to teachers and students. Standardized testing doesn't measure what a student learns, their performance in the classroom and community speaks volumes about how well educated they are. And everyone doesn't learn or test the same.
I have observed first-hand the debilitating effects of excessive testing on students and the devastating impact on instructional time.
I agree that this testing is one of the main problems In our schools!! It takes so much from our kiddos!!
class room instructors R trained & highly dedicated to their subjects & students. their credentials & licenses reaffirm their qualifications & subject knowledge. a highly qualified GMSD class room instructor will know the what, when, where, who, how, why of scholastic preparation & the correct process to examine a prospective student's achievement. The profession will take care of itself N this regard - do we not require the same continuing education for doctors, lawyers, airplane pilots, truck drivers, builders, etc. we R only as good as the people we hire to monitor the profession. endless test does not necessarily mean a student is prepared to become a productive citizen. murf appling, BS Ed, MS, Ed germantown high school southwind high school 1993-2013
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During the course of the Shelby County school year, schools have been excessively tested. This year, Shelby County Schools have been tested more than any other school district in Tennessee. These excessive number of standardized tests have taken away from learning time within the schools, and have caused a drop in grades and scores throughout the public school system; not to mention the physical, psychological, and emotional distress. With this petition, the students of the Shelby County Schools System and throughout the State of Tennessee are seeking out to resolve this issue. The problem with the testing within the public school systems is that there is no way to opt out of the tests.
The purpose of the policy is to provide an option for students to opt out of high-stake tests that are mandated by the school district or the school itself. This policy excludes the ability to opt out of Tennessee state mandated tests such as ACT, SAT, or TNReady tests. To be exempt, students must provide his/her score report from any college admission test of his/her choice. Another proposition is for the student’s scores to fall at or be above the Tennessee state average score for that test for the current calendar year, and the score report is verifiable through the testing company. Taking standardized tests takes away from learning time in the classroom. This petition is in alignment with the Fair Assessment Act. The policy is to be upheld by the Tennessee Public School System.Our main purpose is to allow students of Tennessee the option to opt out of district tests.
Updates
December 11, 2015
I have been reviewing the feedback provided by many of you regarding the impact of excessive testing on student well-being. These accounts reinforce the necessity of our proposal to reclaim valuable classroom time for actual instruction. My focus currently remains on refining our approach to ensure this remains a professional conversation with the relevant decision makers.
December 11, 2015
The momentum behind this call for educational reform has grown significantly. It is clear that the frustration regarding excessive testing in Shelby County resonates with many families across the state. This level of engagement provides a strong foundation as we move toward the next phase of our advocacy efforts.
22 Comments
This teaching to test doesn't do anyone any good . My son with high functioning Autism does not test well on these test . His test anxiety causes him to just mark an answer just to get done . So you can not get a real test score on him . Why can't we let teachers teach because they love their job , not teach to test .
I am a teacher in the state of TN. All we seem to be able to do is test and common assessments. After these, we still need to teach all the standards and test over them to make sure we have enough grades in the grade book. Please stop all this testing and assessing.
Being a concerned grandparent i feel like all the testing does nothing for everyday living . Get a job and see how well all the testing is applied in everyday living . Imuch rather see a young person know how to read .
The amount of testing in Arab is out of control! My daughter started middle school in Williamson county this school year. At least 20% of the time is spent testing. Imagine how much more learning could take place if we eliminated all the wasted time, energy, and money from this testing. I am a very disappointed parent!
The enormous amount of testing taking place in the school system is taking to much time away from instruction and is adding stress to teachers and students. Standardized testing doesn't measure what a student learns, their performance in the classroom and community speaks volumes about how well educated they are. And everyone doesn't learn or test the same.
I have observed first-hand the debilitating effects of excessive testing on students and the devastating impact on instructional time.
I agree that this testing is one of the main problems In our schools!! It takes so much from our kiddos!!
class room instructors R trained & highly dedicated to their subjects & students. their credentials & licenses reaffirm their qualifications & subject knowledge. a highly qualified GMSD class room instructor will know the what, when, where, who, how, why of scholastic preparation & the correct process to examine a prospective student's achievement. The profession will take care of itself N this regard - do we not require the same continuing education for doctors, lawyers, airplane pilots, truck drivers, builders, etc. we R only as good as the people we hire to monitor the profession. endless test does not necessarily mean a student is prepared to become a productive citizen. murf appling, BS Ed, MS, Ed germantown high school southwind high school 1993-2013
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This teaching to test doesn't do anyone any good . My son with high functioning Autism does not test well on these test . His test anxiety causes him to just mark an answer just to get done . So you can not get a real test score on him . Why can't we let teachers teach because they love their job , not teach to test .