'Sit and stare'? Parent protests District 97 standardized test policy
Last year, when Karen Yarbrough lived in Chicago, she wrote a letter to her son's school principal saying he would not participate in standardized testing.
When the testing period arrived, her son and other students whose parents opted them out of testing were taken to another room where they could engage in educational activities, such as reading.
In early February, Yarbrough (no relation to the Cook County Recorder of Deeds of the same name) sent a similar letter to the principal at Oak Park's Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Elementary School. She didn't want her son to participate in the new federally required Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Career test the weeks of March 9 and 16.
After consulting with Oak Park Elementary School District 97 administrators, the principal said Yarbrough's son would need to sit in the testing room until the first child finishes their test. Then, he would be allowed to engage in non-disruptive activities, such as reading and drawing.
That approach doesn't satisfy Yarbrough, who said children shouldn't be forced to "sit and stare" until someone else has completed the test.
"Put them in the library. I'm not asking for that much, you know," she said.
Of the 3,729 District 97 students expected to take the test, her son was one of about 70 whose parents elected to not take the PARCC test, which is supposed to align with the Common Core standards. District 97 students are among one million statewide taking the PARCC test.
District 97 officials report students test for 60 to 80 minutes a day and average about 30 minutes per test.
"As a result, the students who are not testing have had an average of 30 to 50 minutes of time to engage in non-disruptive activities," said Chris Jasculca, District 97's senior 'Sit and stare'? Parent protests District 97 standardized test policy - Oak Leaves:
