A boycott by Seattle teachers of district mandated Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) tests has drawn support from educators, parents and students across the country. Teachers said they refused to administer the tests because they cover material they are not expected to teach, they take too much time away from learning, especially for struggling students, and giving the MAP tests ties up computer labs for weeks. FairTest supports these teachers and others who are taking a stand against testing overuse and misuse.
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Click Here for the news release from Garfield High teachers who voted unanimously to boycott administration of the MAP tests.
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The above media release includes a link to NWEA site that explains why the MAP tests should not be used to judge individual teachers, a caution Seattle schools have ignored.http://media.charleston.net/2010/pdf/kingsburymemoccsd_102210.pdf
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The Seattle 2013 teachers boycott website is: www.scrapthemap.wordpress.com
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See an Op-Ed by FairTest’s Lisa Guisbond on the boycott: What’s Got Seattle Teachers Fed Up and Firing Back?
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See the FairTest Statement of Support for the Seattle Teachers’ Boycott
- Sign a Petition Supporting Seattle Teachers Refusing to Adminster the MAP
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Also see the Seattle Times news story: http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2020106684_notest11m.html
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Click on the readers comments. There are the usual anti-teacher/anti-union diatribes burning with hostility, there are those who are unaware of actual information about the tests or the uses of standardized tests, there are numerous hurrahs for the teachers (including from parents, several of whom say they have been opting their children out of the MAP tests), and some detailed explanations of the limits and flaws of the MAP.
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Diane Ravitch also includes the news release, and there are some interesting comments in reaction to it: http://dianeravitch.net/2013/01/10/teachers-of-garfield-high-school-in-seattle-say-no/
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One respondent to Ravitch created a Facebook page to support the teachers – there are probably others as well: http://www.facebook.com/SolidarityWithGarfieldHighSchoolTestingBoycott
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