Author: FairTest

Early fall is a very busy season for assessment reformers across the nation, as this week’s stories from a third of the states plus higher education and overseas clearly show. Policy makers are paying particular attention to their constituents’ concerns as Election Day draws near. National The Flaws in NAEP “Achievement Levels” https://dianeravitch.net/2018/09/20/the-letter-i-wrote-about-changing-naep-achievement-levels-you-write-one-too/ California Don’t […]

It’s only the first month of the school year, but assessment reformers are already winning victories that reverse regressive policies. At the same time, more candidates for public office are reflecting the concerns of parents, educators and community leaders by incorporating calls to overhaul testing in their campaign platforms. California Teachers Question New Standardized Testing […]

With every passing week, the grassroots movement organizing to replace standardized testing overkill with better forms of assessment grows stronger and spreads to more parts of the nation. Check out these stories about local actions from Maine to California, with lots of states in between. California New School Data Dashboard Is More User Friendly https://edsource.org/2018/new-friendlier-look-coming-for-californias-school-dashboard/601950 […]

Labor Day marks the official start of the school year in parts of the country, though classroom have been open for a few weeks in many other states. Already, assessment reform campaigns are winning victories as more public officials heed the message that parents, teachers, administrators and community leaders are fed up with standardized exam […]

The new academic year has not even begun in many parts of the country, but the testing wars have started heating up. Assessment reformers are already posting victories in rolling back standardized exam misuse and overuse. Remember that you can sign up allies to receive these free weekly updates at:http://www.fairtest.org/weekly-news-signup. Archived issues are online at:http://www.fairtest.org/news […]

Back-to-school season is the same time when last year’s state standardized exams scores are released. Does that make sense? Certainly not, if the purpose of assessment is to provide feedback that can help improve teaching and learning. That’s increasingly the reaction of education leaders and policy makers, as this week’s news clips demonstrate. You can […]

With classrooms opening — or preparing to do so — around the U.S., there’s a seasonal uptick in the volume of stories about teachers, administrators, community activists, and policy makers questioning the value of standardized exam scores, which have long dominated education policy making. Clearly time to ratchet up grassroots pressure, which drives policy change. […]

Public school classrooms open their doors to students in parts of the South at the end of this week. No surprise, then, that coverage of testing plans (and protests) is escalating from mid-summer doldrums. National The U.S. Needs to Get Smarter About Testing https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/07/31/we-all-need-to-get-smarter-about.html Arizona Race, Family Income, and Zip Codes Strongest Predictor of Test […]

With less than 100 days left before the November 2018 elections, grassroots activists are increasing the pressure on contenders for Congress, statewide offices, legislative seats, and local school boards to speak out against testing misuse and overuse. This is the season to get the attention of public officials and win their commitment to genuine assessment […]

FairTest is pleased to announce that Andre Green will take over as Executive Director later this summer when Dr. Monty Neill retires. For details about Andre’s background and early information about a November event to honor Monty and welcome Andre: http://www.fairtest.org/andre-green-be-new-fairtest-executive-director-whe National Questions and Answers About ESSA’s Testing Requirement http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2018/07/essa_testing_funding.html Arkansas Test Scores, Damn Lies, […]