Not surprisingly, the huge, national college admissions scandal -- with a major testing component -- dominated this week's education news. The fact that so many other stories about standardized exams also appeared attests to the power of parents, educators and activists in making assessment reform a powerful issue.
Florida Students Get More Time for Test Prep, Not Learning
Between expensive test prep, pricey advisors, unethical, and, in this case, downright illegal behavior, ACT and SAT scores are easily “gamed” by those with financial means. To reduce the unfair advantage that people with abundant resources have in our test-reliant admissions system, FairTest leads the national movement for test-optional admissions policies. Today more than 1,000 colleges and universities have test-optional policies that evaluate an applicant's entire portfolio.
FairTest is part of a new Massachusetts coalition with a simple message: It's time for Governor Charlie Baker and the state legislature to make it their number one priority to reinvest $1.5 billion a year in public education, from pre-K through college, with the funding increase not attached to any additional testing.
Our public education system is a key part of what makes Massachusetts a great place to live and work. But testing overkill, combined with austerity school funding, has undermined our schools and our quality of life.
As 2017 comes to a close, your contribution to FairTest will help accelerate the current surge of assessment reform victories. Just look at the list of wins so far in 2017:
