Tisch: ‘Opt out’ movement could lead to national test
ALBANY—If too many students "opt out" of Common Core-aligned state exams later this month, New York might be forced to administer national tests instead, Board of Regents chancellor Merryl Tisch said during a public radio interview on Tuesday.
“New York is in a unique position,” Tisch said on WNYC’s “The Brian Lehrer Show.”“Most other states in this country are being forced into two national tests. New York State took the opportunity over these last several years to build our own state tests, and that is exactly why I am particularly interested in curtailing this ‘opt out’ movement. Because in order for us to be able to have viable state test, we need a viable number of students in every district showing up to be tested. We need to have valid, reliable state assessments.
“In the absence of that critical number we will be forced, unfortunately—and I truly believe unfortunately—to adopt a national test,” she said.
As part of the federal Race To The Top competitive grant program, the U.S. government offered funding to two groups of states to develop exams based on the Common Core. The testing consortia are called the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, or PARCC, and Smarter Balanced. Both will begin giving their tests this year.
New York has been involved in the development of the PARCC tests but decided to create its own Common Core-aligned state tests initially andbegan administering them years before other states.
State education officials have postponed transitioning to the PARCC tests, and Tisch said she’d like to keep it that way for a while longer.
“Let me remind everyone that New York was a leader at that table in developing those national tests, so we very much had our oar in the water there as those tests were developed,” Tisch said. “However, I truly believe that these tests are just embarking now. … I’d like to give these national tests a year or two to roll out to see what the kinks are in them before I would subject New York students and New York teachers and New York parents to yet another change.”
Tisch said other states that don’t want to transition to the PARCC or Smarter Balanced tests have asked to “borrow” New York’s tests, which were developed under a five-year, $32 million contract with Pearson.
Tisch also addressed the uncertainty over the role of the Board of Regents and state education department in developing new teacher evaluations. The state budget, approved last week, detailed a new evaluation system but charged state education officials with finalizing details.
Capital reported on Tuesday that it’s unclear even to Tisch and the leaders of the department whether they have any power to impact what’s in law, despite lawmakers’ arguments that the board and department would have broad authority to craft a new evaluation system.
During the radio interview, Tisch stressed that the board and department would work to defuse the contentious political situation that has developed around the evaluations, especially as Governor Andrew Cuomo has battled teachers’ unions.
“I listened very carefully to the language of the legislative leaders, particularly Assemblywoman [Catherine] Nolan and chairman [John] Flanagan on the Senate side,” Tisch said. “I think, quite frankly, everyone is all over the map here. They are looking to Tisch: 'Opt out' movement could lead to national test | Capital New York: