Families who choose to opt their children out of standardized tests often have a personal reason: excessive testing, concerns about student data, classroom…
For many New York families, “Common Core algebra” describes a faster and more formal approach to mathematics in the middle grades. The standards emphasize…
Parents, educators, and students have a meaningful way to raise concerns about standardized testing in New York: a clear, evidence-based letter to the New York…
Kindergarten readiness assessments are meant to help educators understand how children are developing before or shortly after they enter school. They may…
Parents often hear that standardized tests are used to judge teachers, but the process is less direct than that statement suggests. In New York, teacher…
“Close reading” became a familiar phrase when the Common Core State Standards reshaped English language arts instruction in New York. The approach asks…
Some New York school districts have adopted policies that discourage, restrict, or stigmatize families who refuse state standardized tests. These rules may…
Parents often encounter school governance through a board meeting, a budget vote, a testing dispute, or a policy change. The New York State School Boards…
High-stakes exams are often presented as neutral measures of student achievement. In practice, the consequences attached to test scores can shape school…
Standardized tests can feel intimidating, especially when children believe their score defines their intelligence or determines how adults see them. A calm,…