New Mexico students join others in nation against new tests

[left-of-center2012]

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New assessment tests that have angered parents and teachers across the nation prompted walkouts Monday by hundreds of high school students in New Mexico who had been set to take the exams.

The idea that students can refuse to take required tests and stage a walk out, just seems incredible.
Never in my years of schooling did I even hear anyone suggest we not take a test we didn't want to take,
and walk out in protest.

What will happen to these students when they get into the job force?
Will they refuse to do some job assigned to them?
Will they walk out to demonstrate in front of their employers, proclaiming their right to decide what they will or will not do?

I just don't get it.
If I had walked out, I'd probably have received detention after school. If I refused to take a test I'd have received an "F".

[Warpy]

1. This test isn't like a pop quiz in math class

Students are told that their score on this thing, part of the Common Core nonsense, will determine how far they go in life, whether or not they are eligible for trade school, college, or any sort of decent work, or whether they'll be relegated to fast food for their whole lives.

Instead of teaching, teachers have had to waste time drilling students on test taking strategies.

The stress it's putting on students is incredible. The amount of teaching time it's wasting is appalling. It's a complete waste of resources and an unfair way to measure anyone's "readiness for careers."

I remember how wigged out a lot of kids were over the SATs, but those were voluntary. The PARCC test is not voluntary. While it looks good on paper to test everybody to see how well the schools have done educating them, the reality is that some kids are just not good at taking high pressure, high stakes tests. In addition, it's a complete boondoggle, a high cost venture aimed at ruining some lives.

I was good at taking tests, even standardized, black out the circle tests. In fact, I was phenomenal at them. It would be easy for me to shrug and ask what the big deal is. However, life experience has taught me that some people out there who do poorly on standardized testing are every bit as knowledgeable as I am and often more creative when it comes to finding novel solutions.

The kids have a point here and it's one that should be paid attention to. Make the sucker voluntary so students headed to college have a measuring stick of some sort. Let the kids who are headed elsewhere avoid it or take it later. Save money for the strapped school systems around here. Most of all, let teachers go back to teaching.

[left-of-center2012]

2. Back in the day ....

When I was in high school during the early 60s we had to take a test which supposedly told us what type of job we would be best at.
I don't recall the name, but it wasn't one of the SATs, etc.
As I recall I was supposed to be headed to a career in office work.
I guess I missed that off-ramp.

[DhhD]

4. The test you are describing was an apptitude test. Common Cores testings and Common Core

Curriculum is a program from a PRIVATE BUSINESS. It is not your local School Board and local district's curriculum like it used to be when you went to school. The curriculum, for many years in the past, was decided on by the residence of your community and approved in its professionalized form by the state education agency-New Mexico Education Agency.

What is happening is mostly due to the State and National Level Chambers of Commerce promoting private business deal with private schooling firms to come in and take over, setting the state up, for the complete takeover and transfer of public education, first though curriculum changes, then vouchers, then ALEC proposes the legislation necessary for State Senators and House Members, mostly Conservatives, to vote to destroy Public Education. It has already happened in Louisiana.

Who owns stock in these private schooling firms and Charter Schools? Corporations and Conservative business owners and government officials on the all levels, city, county, state, and federal. Sorry to say that Secretary Duncan is promoting Common Core. In my opinion, Common Core is promoting the privatization of public education at the expense of the students. Were you ever divided up to go to college or off to war based on the results of some private firm grading a Common Core Type of test? That would have NEVER EVER been allowed in the past. The US is being destroyed by extremist Tea Party/John Bircher types/Dominion New Apostolic Reformists. Teachers are being evaluated on the results of these test so they can be fired and replaced by someone making minimum wage, leaving more for a private business's profit account. In some programs like Jeb Bush sold in Texas, professional teachers and therapist were replaced with a computer with one program covering the hard drive; very expensive. And it was a failure. Once your money is sent to private businesses, they do not care if it is a failure; they are in it for the money.

Privatization means that there is no accountability by Education Code law over a business. You do not get your money back if you child is dismissed from a Charter School. Charter schools must trigger some kind of failure in the System in order to get your child and the state's money for your child, so they use privatization techniques of all kinds. I have only listed a few. Everybody needs to wake up and take a very close look at what is going on. Texas tried machine teaching, then tried to start vouchers, and Common Core, which failed, then Home Rule, now it is back to vouchers again in the 2015 Texas Legislature.

Testing for the wrong reason, is the easiest way to destroy students and teachers. Wishing all of you the best (for your kids, educators and communities and our nation).

[Dr. Xavier]

3. My wife is an educator and

all of her colleagues hate the common core bs. Good for these students to walk-out. In East LA in the sixties (or was it the early 70's?), Chicano students staged walkouts at several high schools in the area. It is part of the Latino history, that is lost in the mainstream culture. I, for one, applaud them and wish them the best.