standardized tests.....optional?

[zjandosmom]

Does anyone have any info as far as having a 'choice' in whether our kids are being given these tests? I vaguely remember reading something about opting out of these tests...of course I can't remember where though! TIA.

[MomInCalifornia]

I'm in CA and here is a quote from our school districts website. Bolding mine.

"
All students in grades 2 through 11 must take the designated STAR test. Students learning English and students in special education programs are included in "all" students, and they must take the test. The only students exempted from STAR testing are students whose Individual Education Plans (IEP) specifically exempt them from standardized testing and students with written parent requests to exempt them. "

[blizzard_babe]

It differs by state. However, as a teacher, I'd beg you NOT to just keep your kid at home on testing day unless there's NO other option for opting out. If they're absent, it's always a "ding" against the school (and you'll have to keep them out again on the absentee make-up date, and even again if your particular state is really persistent), while in some states a "parent refusal" isn't counted as a negative against the school.

[annethcz]

With NCLB, the goal is that EVERY student in EVERY public school passes the standardized tests. If your child doesn't take the test, the school is penalized and can lose funding.

[kmeyrick]

I am not a fan of standardized tests, but try to get your child officially exempt because of your refusal. Please don't keep him home, it might not work.

[zjandosmom]

nak-thanks for the replies. I wouldn't just keep him home I just hate that my 1st and 3rd graders have to take tests which last several days and are very stressful. Now the school is sending home 'study' packets with our homework. I understand a need for such tests I just don't think it needs to be done until 4-5th grade.

I have been reading the APS website and it doesn't look like a parent can 'opt out'.

Just thought I'd put the question out there and see what came back.
thanks

[Flor]

What state are you in?

In my state parents can opt kids out. It does count against the school, but sorry, that isn't reason enough for me to put my kid through something I don't belive in. My dss does take the tests because he sort of likes them and does well on them, so it hasn't been an issue for us. If a kid is just absent, the school has several make up days. You may have to dig around for the information. I'm a teacher and I'm not "allowed" to tell parents they can opt out.

[thehippiemama]

Where I am there is no opt out. If you have your child miss school that week (it is spread between 4-5 days) they will just take it on make up days. Make up days can be anytime the child is in school prior to the testing window closing. So there is no way to keep a child out of school for the testing week and all the possible make up days. In our state there is also a real crack down on missing days of school ~ parents can be prosecuted for their children missing too many days.

[zjandosmom]

We're in Georgia and from what I can tell we don't have a way out. I'll keep searching.

[mommy68]

Originally Posted by zjandosmom

Does anyone have any info as far as having a 'choice' in whether our kids are being given these tests? I vaguely remember reading something about opting out of these tests...of course I can't remember where though! TIA.

I homeschool and we are required to administer the standardized testing in our state. I don't like it either but it's required.

What is the reason you want to opt out? No one sees the results except the school and the parents. I would think in school your child is being tested every so often on the skills they learn in the classroom right? My kid would get stressed out over those kind of tests since they actually counted towards their grades. I disagree with regular classroom testing more than I do the annual standardized testing.

[lightheart]

Originally Posted by zjandosmom

Now the school is sending home 'study' packets with our homework.

Be glad they are just NOW sending home the packets, the middle school in our district did not do too well on their testing last year and was targeted. So from the start of the year the students had a study packet/book that they had to complete so many pages in each night/week.

I honestly do not like some aspects of the testing, not the test itself, more so the whole way some schools/teachers look at them and push for only teaching for the test.

It's nice to have the tests in place though because like with our middle school it really raises a flag that says hey somebody isn't doing something right here at this school.

(my son is only in kindy and they are doing a test of sorts in a couple weeks, it's not included in the big numbers, only within the school trying to keep itself accountable and I'm really glad it's there.)

as for choice... I was told that even with an IEP my younger son who is not in school yet, just therapy through the school, that he would have to take the tests but that they could be modified so that they worked with XYZ that were in his IEP... examples might be giving more time, allowing extra time, having the test done in a seperate room so that he was guarenteed to hear the instructions, basically whatever that was needed to get the test done

[sebandg'smama]

http://www.alfiekohn.org/stdtest.htm
Follow this link to find out how (and why) to get out of the tests.

I just saw Alfie Kohn talk tonight and I am all fired up to get my ds exempt from his tests.

[applejuice]

Yes, I understand why. I never let my son take any tests until he was in sixth grade...in school...he was homeschooled before that.

[zjandosmom]

Thanks for the great responses!

sebandg'smama= thanks for the link. Very interesting and I was able to email someone from my state for more info. Thank you.

I'll let you all know what my results are.
k

[kmeyrick]

Good luck! I wish more parents would balk at standardized tests. They would probably change the format and make these tests shorter, broken into smaller paces. Say, one segment of the test every month, where the kids get used to it, it is short, and not stressful. Having it all in one fell swoop is a lot to ask.

[eirual]

http://www.alfiekohn.org/books/tcast.htm

Might have some great info for you.

[zjandosmom]

That is my issue...........testing all day for several days in a row is too much. My ds1 took it last year and scored very well so it's not a concern for his 'score' but more a concern for his overall being. My ds2 is in 1st grade and I know it will be too much for him. I too wish they would break it up into smaller pieces.

[EFmom]

My kids, who are straight A students and have scored over the 90th percentile in every one of these tests, get incredibly stressed out by the tests. I have given them my permission to just write their names on the tests and leave them blank if they feel they are too upset to take them. They haven't done that yet, but if they do, I'm fine with it.

If it hurts the school, I couldn't care less, and I've let the principal know this. This school has top notch test scores. That's more because they have the right demographic for taking standardized tests than anything else. They should stop spending so much time hyping the tests and stressing out the kids.