Seattle teachers' MAP boycott gains nationwide support
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SEATTLE -- A protest against a test has now stretched from Seattle all the way to the East coast.
Hundreds of teachers nationwide say they stand with Garfield High School teachers who refuse to give their students the map test.
From Chief Sealth High to Garfield High, teachers and students rallied in support of Garfield teachers and their stand against the MAP test. Supporters also gathered across the country, from Portland to New York.
"We heard in Denton, Texas, they're rallying for Garfield and the MAP boycott," said Garfield High teacher Jesse Hagpopian.
When teachers refused to give the standardized test, Seattle Superintendent Banda directed administrators to do it.
"So our vice principal came, and it was like a walk of doom kind of thing," said Jovien Robinson, a freshman at Garfield High School.
The walk led to computers and the assessment test that covers math, science and language arts.
"All the questions seemed irrelevant, (I was thinking) like, 'Why am I taking this thing?"' said Robinson.
According to the president of the PTSA, three out of every four students have opted out of the test this week.
"Right now, we think it's a colossal waste of everyone's time and energy," said Garfield PTSA President Phil Sherburne.
The writers of the test say it is designed to measure both student achievement and calculate their growth. But parents here believe the money spent on the MAP should instead help kids who are struggling.
"Even the sponsors say it's really problematic to use at the high school level. It does have some value at the lower grades," Sherburne said.
Seattle Public Schools officials said they are determined to complete the testing in the next few weeks.
The district did assemble a task force to review standardized tests. The group's first meeting is scheduled to be held on Thursday.
Hundreds of teachers nationwide say they stand with Garfield High School teachers who refuse to give their students the map test.
From Chief Sealth High to Garfield High, teachers and students rallied in support of Garfield teachers and their stand against the MAP test. Supporters also gathered across the country, from Portland to New York.
"We heard in Denton, Texas, they're rallying for Garfield and the MAP boycott," said Garfield High teacher Jesse Hagpopian.
When teachers refused to give the standardized test, Seattle Superintendent Banda directed administrators to do it.
"So our vice principal came, and it was like a walk of doom kind of thing," said Jovien Robinson, a freshman at Garfield High School.
The walk led to computers and the assessment test that covers math, science and language arts.
"All the questions seemed irrelevant, (I was thinking) like, 'Why am I taking this thing?"' said Robinson.
According to the president of the PTSA, three out of every four students have opted out of the test this week.
"Right now, we think it's a colossal waste of everyone's time and energy," said Garfield PTSA President Phil Sherburne.
The writers of the test say it is designed to measure both student achievement and calculate their growth. But parents here believe the money spent on the MAP should instead help kids who are struggling.
"Even the sponsors say it's really problematic to use at the high school level. It does have some value at the lower grades," Sherburne said.
Seattle Public Schools officials said they are determined to complete the testing in the next few weeks.
The district did assemble a task force to review standardized tests. The group's first meeting is scheduled to be held on Thursday.
When I was in school we had testing all the time. What makes this different? I do remember however the problem of "irrelevant" as I grew up in a small town with no stoplights. There were questions on the test about how to read a bus schedule and other urban activities. This wasn't academic in my opinion and I had never seen a public transportation bus not to mention a bus schedule.
The school I went to was one of the most underfunded schools in the state at the time. I had only ever seen new textbooks one year out of my 12. Despite that, there were some very smart people there including national merit scholars. One person in my graduating class even got a 4 year scholarship to Yale. I guess my point is that funding and tests are no excuse for the pathetic situation that is the educational system in this country. How is it that Microsoft has to import so many workers from India - not exactly the richest country on earth!
The teachers must be upset because the deliberate and systematic "dumbing down" of the population is being exposed by these tests.
So teachers donât want the students and their parents to know where they compare academically to others, teachers also donât want to be graded in regards to their own performance. No wonder we are creating a generations that are so behind compared other countries.
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Teachers give of this fake image that they care for our children but really itâs their job security they truly care about.
 @Nathan Boi Bulls-eye, my friend.
What is with the people, why does everyone in this state have to boycott every ruling?? You are against everything!
After 6th grade, I never attended another public school. And thank God. You look at this crap and realize just how screwed up our public school system is. We need more charter schools here, and we need to slowly dismantle the public teachers' unions and refocus on educating kids and dumping bad teachers.Â
 @lakeview Edifying never gets old:
Bush ignored his own ordered report on the Public verses Private/Charter school debate so you probably will too; "The study, commissioned by the DOE's National Center for Education Statistics (run by a Bush appointee who once called teachers a "terrorist group") , looked at 2003 math and reading scores from nearly 7,000 public schools and more than 530 private schools. The study concluded that public school students were performing as well as, and in some cases even better than, private school students from similar backgrounds.¹ These findings conflicted with the Bush Administration's position that handing out vouchers to attend private and parochial schools is the best way to educate poor children who attend failing public schools".
 @thebigteacher  @lakeview I think we should blame Bush and the Republicans for everything wrong in this country now and for the next 40 years....smh
 @thebigteacher  @lakeview I think its key that the comparisons were of individuals of similar backgrounds.  The mean results showed that private schools out performed public schools in both 4th and 8th grade. The demographic differences resulted in the mean being different that the comparison of kids with a similar background (I think). Anyway, here's a link to the study in PDF
format: Â http://www.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/national/20060715report.pdf
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 @thebigteacher Wow, in "some cases" the public school kids performed better. That's just swell.Â
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 @lakeview As well or better. You are familiar with conjunctions? Your stellar private education led you to that ingeniously clever comment? Wow.
The writers of the test say it is designed to measure both student achievement and calculate their growth. Ok so whats the big deal? When I was in school I had to take many test's to measure where I was at academically, why not continue to do this? Is a bad to measure a students progress in school? Is this test a problem because there are so many students that speak ESL and it reflects on the teachers? Maybe... it's just better to pass every student regardless of what achievement level they are in school....If you are a student getting strait A's you will be on the same playing field as a student getting all D's. (everybody gets a gold star now,right?)Â
 @rightandexact It is not about measuring progress. The district requires certain things to be taught and the MAP is not meshing with those requirements.
 @thebigteacher Why can't  the MAP test be integrated with the districts "certain things to be taught" (I checked out the website) is NWEA that rigid and non-willing to compromise and change up the test a bit? I'm sure tax payers are paying a good sum of money to have the ability to utilize the MAP test for the district, why not tweak the MAP test to the specified standards for Seattle schools and then be done with it?
 @rightandexact The NWEA has nothing to do with NEA or WEA or any teacher's Union. They exist only to sell tests. Aligning the test with the curriculum is something they would be happy to do as long as you gave them enough time and money.
 @thebigteacher Do you have a link to what the requirements/things are? I'm really curious. I suppose I could look them up, thx
A reminder to everyone, especially if you are a typical American worker, that your job is to do your job.  Your job isn't to do the work of the employer when it interferes with the job.  There's a difference.  That is why there are Job Descriptions; they represent that factual contract between employer and employee even in a Employment-At-Will State.  Ever hear the trite phrase, "We have changing business needs, so we're going to . . .."?  There is only one Business Need, and that is to make the right tool available to the right person so they can do their job.
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It is protected speech and protected activity for employees to engage in concerted activity to improve work conditions, which can include even things like badmouthing the boss on occasion or protesting. Â That is why they cannot be counseled or fired without significant due process, as well judged by the National Labor Relations Board over and over again. Â
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Being able to teach students to think instead of teaching them to fill in circles IS their job, for they are teachers, not drill sergeants. Â Go get 'em teachers. Â
 @ETSubmariner It seems to me that the problem is: what is happening before the kids fill in the circle?  There ought to be an execution of thought, perhaps a realization that the subject matter is familiar, that they have learned this at some point.Â
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The issue seems to be less in the value of the test than the fact that it is now, somehow or other, tied to holding schools and teachers accountable. In all fairness, a teacher cannot do the job by his/her self. Â Parents have to step up and demand more from their kids and put in the time required to succeed. If a child shows up, doesn't do any work, and simply fills in the circle, he ought to left back. Responsibility lies with the students too..but unfortunately, I don't think the school system gives out "F's" any more, least our children's 'self-esteem' is crushed.Â
Heaven forbid we make teachers accountable.
Click this link and see a champion of students over union- incompetent teachers  teachers.http://content.usatoday.com/topics/topic/Michelle+Rhee - This argument needs another Michele Rhee champion.
Why is it that people just won't do what they're supposed to anymore? Whatever happened to showing up at work and just doing your job to the best of your ability? Â
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How do we differentiate Civil Disobedience from childish petulance?  This is not a case of the Nazi state requiring citizens to engage in morally reprehensible behavior under threat of death.  This is a case of kids taking the tests they are supposed to and teachers administering them as they are required to.  If there are issues, bring up the various issues and debate the merits of it.  Once a decision has been made, adhere to the even if it opposes your preferred outcome.  Sometimes strikes are little more than adult temper tantrums.Â
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As a parent, I am for the MAP tests. Â
@mediaYT You are the kind of parent who is perfectly ok allowing corporate testing companies to use students as guinea pigs for future tests without pay or other compensation, aren't you? http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/students-required-9-hours-english-math-exams-state-dummy-questions-article-1.1063239
The stakes also have never been higher, not for the pupils who take the tests or the teachers whose evaluations will be based on their studentsâ performance or the schools that could face closure if pupil scores drop.
Yet fewer of the answers public school children give this year on those tests will actually count toward their final score.
State education officials and their private testing firm, Pearson, have tossed in a large number of âfield testâ questions for the first time - questions that donât count in the score but make it easier to design future tests.
 @Texas teacher I'm the kind of parent who doesn't fall for hysteria and fear mongering.Â
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With respect to the absurdity of 'students being used as guinea pigs without pay or compensation': do you get paid by Google, Twitter, Facebook, Komo4 for using their system? Â I'm certain they are using you as a 'guinea pig' to create an ad related profit center. This argument is little more than false hysteria.
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@mediaYT I feel so sorry for your children. To have a parent who wants them to learn how to be corporate shills must be very sad. People should always question those in authority (in this case, the superintendent had a financial stake in this testing regime, and yet, you are still more than willing to waste your child's time to help pad the bottom line of a testing corporation). That is just pathetic. And, by the way, the issue has been brought up many times in the past; the reason this has come to a head is that the people bringing it up were ignored. This has your attention doesn't it? See how that works? If you had been paying attention to the issues that affect your own child, you would have known that this has been an ongoing issue for years. So maybe you should do some more research about these tests and who is profitting financially from them before you spout off in your ridiculous judgemental way on here. Why would any intelligent taxpayer want to give a testing corporation billions of tax dollars for a testing regime when teachers are quite capable of making their own tests at no additional charge to taxpayers. As a taxpayer, I am against the MAP. Get a clue!
@Texas teacher
'Questioning authority" needs to include questioning teachers and professors and the academic culture. As for "corporate shills", is the opposite of that sitting in their parent's basement with a skateboard when they are 30, smokng pot and going to protest on behalf of career felons becasue some college professor taught them to view victimizers as incapable of being responsible for any of their actions on a count of being oppressed by everything?
 @Texas teacher  @mediaYT No need to feel sorry for my children, they do quite well in school and the MAP tests.  I hold them accountable for their work and spend time and money to help them as much as I can with their education.  I try my best to teach the kids that education is a gift and they should not squander the opportunity. Â
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What you're talking about is special interests and education. Â That's an issue which needs to be addressed but I'm not going to stand on the sideline while my kids get the short end of the stick.Â
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I'm totally for a voucher program as it would allow my money to be used where I see it benefits my children the most. Â That's probably the best way to separate the issue of special interests and education.Â
 @Texas teacher  @mediaYT So then you like it when your students question your authority? "corporate shills?" You sound like you are indoctrinating them to be good little state property.
"Question Authority" is a great slogan - *sometimes." But once authority is established, such as the fact that you are being payed to do a job, then doing the job you are being paid to do is the proper course. That is why I support vouchers - the teachers can work in a school that they like, and parents can send their kids where they think they will get the most effective education for their particular kids. And if a teacher likes working in a school that parents deem ineffective, then they are out of a job - which is the way it should be.
Testing days take away from teaching days. Many tests are tied to school funding and so justified in that manner. Yes, there is a need to measure learning. I applaud those standing up against the test. Kudos!
Government school teachers oppose standarized tests for one reason - it clearly displays how incompetent they are. The tests aren't the problem, tests show the symptom of the problem; being mad about the test is like being mad at a pregnancy test for being positive. But we can't hide from the truth - America is what... ranked 32nd in math in the world?
 @Kramula "it clearly displays how incompetent they are", have you even read the articles? Are you so anti-teacher, anti-Union that you simply ignore their cogent argument?
@Kramula America is ranked 32nd in math because students are not being taught math. They are being taught how to take a test. See how that works? And if you think teachers are so incompetent, then maybe you should take over for us. Let's see how well you do, CLOWN! Plus you are a complete fool for suggesting that this MAP test should even be used to measure teachers' ability to teach. The company itself said it should not be used in this manner. But here you are arguing with even the testing company. It is obvious you are completely ignorant of the actual situation and just want to disparage teachers. Get over your hatred of us; it damages your credibility even more than your pic.
Kramula, those are pretty bold words. Â I suggest you do some research on the problems with standardized test. Â Perhaps your comments will be a little more thoughtful... Â
 @Kramula I see the "no teacher left behind" theory
 @Kramula I'm curious where all of you teacher haters went to school.  Are you a product of this horribly broken system where teachers don't give a sh** about the kids and are only concerned with hiding from the world how incompetent they are?  If so, then how did you ever get an education?  If not, then where have you gleaned this information that you have about what goes on in a public high school?
@nocadenas @Kramula public schools are a joke as America has one of the worst education system which is why my daughter will never set foot in a public school.
 @gastoys  @nocadenas  @Kramula Documentation please. When apples are compared to apples our test scores are as good as anyone's. We test everyone they do not. They are homogeneous we are not. They have well defined and commonly practiced norms and mores. They have a culture embracing and placing value on education. We worship athletes and Kardashians. They respect and honor teachers. We blame, belittle and undervalue.
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As for your private vs public school thinking:
Bush ignored his own ordered report on the Public verses Private/Charter school debate so you probably will too; "The study, commissioned by the DOE's National Center for Education Statistics (run by a Bush appointee who once called teachers a "terrorist group") , looked at 2003 math and reading scores from nearly 7,000 public schools and more than 530 private schools. The study concluded that public school students were performing as well as, and in some cases even better than, private school students from similar backgrounds.¹ These findings conflicted with the Bush Administration's position that handing out vouchers to attend private and parochial schools is the best way to educate poor children who attend failing public schools".
MAP testing is dumb. Â The best cartoon I saw was a picture of an elephant a monkey a fish in a fish bowl a dog standing in front of a man at a desk. Â The man says something about standardized testing that everyone needs to be tested the same. Â Then he asks all of them to climb the tree.Â
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The system is broken
 @The206 And the reason is that there is no real agreement on what the purpose of K-12 public education is. If there were, then finding/making a test that measures success in that purpose would be easy. But, because they disagree on what the goal is, they will always disagree on how to measure outcomes.
 @The206 Only because the union is helping you run away from the real problem
@Mike @The206 The union, huh? What about all the failing schools in the right-to-work states, which perform even worse? Please enlighten us. I work in Texas where we are right near the bottom. No union to blame here, so what is the problem?
Who in the hell makes these test that know one wants the kids to take. I know BUSH it has to be BUSH
Public schools is like youth sports give em trophy and send to the next grade
 @Mike Mike... Your syntax makes a strong point regarding the current state of public education.Â
What a terrific day for teachers. Â See what happens when people unite! Â Americans have lost much of the zeal that the founding fathers possessed. Â This is a taste of what if feels like to stand up to corrupt power. Â Great lesson for kids too. Â Next, we should dump the damn MSP. Â It also is a flawed test and a pathetic way to measure schools and teachers.
 @turtlestyle Yes, the teachers are more stupid than the students.
We don't need no stinking tests. We are all too stupid to pass them. We just need to take up space in the public schools and get a diploma without learning anything.  Hell, 50% of the parents can't even tell you who the vice president is, let alone the secretary of state. We are all too stupid to give a $h!t.
 @Donacita So you would rather they learn to fill in dots with a number two pencil than actually - learn?
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When you do benchmark testing all you test against is the benchmark so what are you going to teach? Oh that's right - how to pass the test. Have a kids that is slow in the class and really needs help - boot 'em out. Send them to special ed where their test score doesn't count in the success/failure and just punt them down the road.
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Standardized testing is a failure - heck there is serious discussion on getting rid of the SAT because all it really proves - you did the SAT really well (or bad) buddy and there is little correlation to good grades on the SAT and being a good student (hint, lots of students with great SAT scores wash out of Ivy league schools every year)
 @Howard Beale   You must be a Seattle teacher. You reach stupid conclusions. Apparently, nobody should be tested because it leads to different interpretations. Obviously, standards of performance are just too unfair.
 @Texas teacher  You sound like a typical teacher. Inadequate education, Marxist tendencies, insubordinate to the authorities appointed above you, and too stupid to know how bad you are. In addition, coming from Texas it is surprising that you speak English. You are obviously the "idiota".
@Donacita @Howard Beale No one is more incompetent than these testing corporations. Just look up all the fines they have had to pay for screwing up with our tax dollars! You are completely clueless. You must be an idiot.
@Donacita @Howard Beale How can standardized testing work without standardized learning? How can you compare the test score of a child with no food to eat to that of someone with a full stomach?Â
 @Howard Beale Apparently, they did not teach you how to spell. The word is "too" and "sprang", not sprung. Your "private" education must have been home schooling like Honey Boo Boo. How is it "socialist" anyway? You need to buy a dictionary. Socialism is an economic system that takes money away from competent people and gives it to incompetents. You should have used the word "imperialistic".  If you have no standards, as you claim, then you have no interest in your performance, and that is why you are incompetent because you have no way to compare it.
@Donacita @Howard Beale belittling the poster, the tool of the weak when they have no position. So, they attack the poster. Where did I say the words no testing, I think you must have failed reading comprehension. I said STANDARDIZED tests. All they do is force teachers to test to one standard, and teach children how to pass the test. Lets look at it through your eyes, hmmmm. If the teachers are lazy, then isn't it easier to have a one size fits all standardized test. Then they can teach John and Jane how to pass the test. They don't have to actually, you know, teach - beyond navigating a fixed standard. Oh, and who exactly set that standard? Are they qualified to even set the bar? It's rather socialist of you actually to take the power of pass/fail out of the hands of local school boards and into the hands of oh save me big government. Sorry sweets - I'm no school teacher. To much money to be made in the private sector and my parents sprung for a private education.
 @Howard Beale  @Donacita Thee old tast we took were juet fin.
 @Mike  @Donacita BWHWHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!