A group of Kutztown mothers created the Kutztown Parents Opt-Out Group on Facebook to encourage others to opt out of taking the standardized state tests, the PSSAs and the Keystones.
“We’d like to grow awareness that opting out is an option, in hopes that parents will research more about what’s going on in the schools,” said Jackie Bridges, a mother of four. “Our kids are loosing their childhood and their innocence. There’s more to school than tests. Let’s start teaching again and stop teaching the test.”
Bridges first saw the negative impacts of standardized testing on her children while residing in Texas and fears the same impacts from the PSSAs. She opted out her daughter Alyssa, 12, a Kutztown Middle School seventh grader, from taking the PSSAs.
“They’re relying too much on the data,” said Kutztown mother Jeri Carroll who opted her son Venice Colicchio, 16, out of taking the Keystones since 9th grade. Formerly a Kutztown High School student, Venice is now a junior at 21st Century Cyber School. “The teachers that know these children, that work with them day in and day out, they know what their strengths and what their weaknesses are. What is the test really telling them?”
Against data mining and the purpose of the test, Caroll suggested different methods of evaluating teachers and students, such as sampling or accreditation for evaluating teachers.
“None of us want to see the teachers hurt. We like the teachers,” said Bridges. “I want to see the love of learning back. I want to see my kids still be able to play outside, learn hands-on and learn things that they’ll actually use in the real world.”
Caroll’s son Venice said that most of his biology class time was spent learning terms and Latin roots rather than doing hands-on classroom activities such as labs or dissection.
“The curriculum is just fit around the Keystones. It’s not what it used to be when teachers would make their own curriculum,” said Venice. “Back then, parents, teachers and students had power. Now, bureaucrats and politicians and lawyers have all the power, and the federal and state government. It’s going to end in disaster. If you look at anything in history where something becomes too bureaucratic, it’s always going to collapse.”
They are also concerned that the time taken for preparing and taking the PSSAs is taking time away from classroom labs, hands-on activities and field trips.
“All those hands-on things. When we used to go to like Gettysburg and really learn history, we’re not doing that anymore,” said Bridges. “They’re wasting a lot of time on these tests instead of the kids learning.”
“Most of the stuff that I learned this year that was pretty much the same stuff I learned last year,” said Alyssa. She said they don’t get to go on a field trip this year, she and her classmates will get to go on an 8th grade class trip next year. Also her biology teacher said they would do dissection in class, if there was time left this school year.
Kutztown mom Emily Dietrich Witmer graduated from Kutztown High in 1993, at which time she took the Iowa Assessments standardized tests, which meant two days of filling in circles.
“Those tests are fine, but eight days plus of testing for an 8 year old? I don’t think so,” said Dietrich Witmer who opted ot her daughter Sophia, 8, a second grader at Kutztown Elementary. “What they’re really doing with it is assessing the teachers. I don’t mind teacher assessment but not when it takes like 4 percent of my child’s educational days.”
Noting the prep time and the curriculum is now tailored to the PSSAs, she said the PSSAs are too big and too long.
“The purposes are murky at best. There has to be a better way to basically grade the teachers,” said Dietrich Witmer.
Testing dates are determined by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. This year English Language Arts was April 3 to 7; math will be April 24 to 28; science is May 1 to 5. For the PSSAs, the state requires that every Pennsylvania student in grades 3 through 8 is assessed in English Language Arts and Math. Every Pennsylvania student in grades 4 and 8 is assessed in science. For the Keystones, every Pennsylvania student will take an end of course assessments in Algebra I, Biology, and Literature.
“The tests do provide a standardized exam by which to evaluate the effectiveness of our curriculum implementation, student learning, and data to inform our instruction. The data we receive is very valuable in planning for instruction, modifying/adjusting programming, and evaluating effectiveness,” said Kutztown Superintendent George Fiore.
However, he said, “The PSSA/Keystone exams do not hold any value for the student in their current state. The impact is minimal which could potentially impact a students’ motivation. There is a proposal to have the Keystone exams be a graduation requirement. That would add “value” for the student but at what cost. We are not sure on the details which impacts our ability to plan for programming for our students. The tests are a snapshot in time for a student. A student could have a bad day or be a poor test taker.”
According to Fiore, “the Pennsylvania School Code allows students/parents to opt out of exams for religious or philosophical purposes. Alternative activities are dependent upon the grade and content area for the student. An ELA example would be a student reading stories/passages/articles and responding to questions.”
There were 23 Kutztown Middle School students and eight elementary students who opted out of the ELA portion of the PSSA. There were a couple of high school students who opted out of the Keystones.
“A lot more parents are starting to opt out,” said Bridges. “People can still opt out and they have. They’re starting to opt out for the math portion of the PSSA after their kids coming home really upset about the ELA (English Language Arts).”
Carroll, Bridges and Witmer formed the Kutztown Parents Opt-Out Group on Facebook to post information and answer questions about opting out.
“The movement is becoming stronger,” said Bridges. This is a bigger fight than just here in Kutztown. Parents all over the United States are opting out more and more. We want to see our kids love learning again because they lost that.”