NYSUT

DAY OF ACTION: Western New York activists call for resistance to any anti-public education policy

greeceteachers NYSUT, Political Action

rochester

GTA President Jason Cooney

 

Nearly 100 people representing at least a dozen NYSUT local unions, parents, students, labor leaders, religious leaders, civic leaders and community members huddled together in the cold evening air outside Rochester’s School Without Walls Thursday.

In chants and speeches, and on signs and shields, they called for access to a high-quality public education for every student and stood up against the Trump-DeVos political agenda. They sent a clear message to the new Trump administration that any attempt to privatize, demonize, supplant or divest in public education will be met with resistance.

Full story from NYSUT here.

Governor Cuomo Says State Tests Are “Meaningless,” So Why Should Students Do Their Best?

greeceteachers Common Core & Testing, NYSUT, Political Action, Uncategorized

Diane Ravitch's blog

Governor Andrew Cuomo doesn’t understand why students should opt out of state testing, because the tests won’t count against students. Instead, they will be used to rank and evaluate teachers. So, he wonders, why should students opt out?

But the governor is not recognizing the consequences of his statement. As one blogger asked, why should students take the tests if they are meaningless?

That is a good reason to opt out. Why should students waste their time on tests that are meaningless?

But more important, if the students are not motivated to do their best, if they know the tests don’t count, why should teachers be evaluated by their students’ lack of effort? Taking a test is not like stepping on a scale. The scores vary depending on many factors, not least of which is motivation. If students go into the tests knowing they don’t matter, why should they try?

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An Open Letter to Governor Cuomo: Re-think the Regs of APPR

greeceteachers Common Core & Testing, NYSUT, Political Action

Granted, and...

Dear Governor Cuomo:

I have my whole professional educational life been a supporter of teacher accountability. And, as you may know, I sided publicly with the findings in your recent report on the sham of current local teacher effectiveness ratings in New York schools and districts.

However, I have long written and consulted on the need for transparency in assessment and accountability via released tests after they are given – as the Regents did for over 100 years until recently. You simply cannot expect people to trust a system in which the scores are psychometrically generated and where I cannot see, for myself, what was assessed and what the actual results were. It fails as both credible accountability and as feedback to teachers.

More bluntly: Would you accept such a system for yourself?

The cardinal rule in Quality Control as formulated by Edwards Deming is Drive Out Fear. Alas, a…

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