Several CEA Members recently attended a public forum on High-stakes Testing sponsored by the Richmond Teachers for Social Justice. It was great to see our Members and Building Reps out in the community sharing their expertise and networking with other teachers and parents in the Richmond Metro Area. Participating in events like this is a great way to share our message about what really works well (and what doesn't) in public education, and to confront in a very positive way the corporate-sponsored and government-backed attacks on our profession.
RTSJ is hosting a follow-up meeting on Monday, June 4, 4:30-6:00 pm, at VCU's Oliver Hall Room 4084B (1015 W. Main St., Richmond). The agenda includes a continuation of the public discussion, including steps that can be taken to resist the corrupting effects of high-stakes testing. You can learn more about the group and how to become involved by visiting their website, http://www.rvatsj.org/.
While not affiliated with RTSJ, Chesterfield County Public Schools acknowledges the amount of student, parent, and teacher stress created by high-stakes testing, at the emotional and cognitive levels. The April 2012 edition of Psych Briefs, published by CCPS Psychological Services, was entirely dedicated to managing test anxiety.
This is a big conversation nationally and at the state level. Don't let all the dialogue occur between people who are years removed from the classroom; become part of the conversation here at the local level. Tests, like any other entity, are neither inherently good nor bad; it is the design, implementation, administration, and utilization of the results they yield that can have significant impact on quality teaching and student learning.
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