Another Opt Out Message Being Hijacked
In August 2015 the National Association of State Boards of Educators (NASBE) created a handy dandy chart entitled “Opt Out Guidance” for all fifty states. How wonderful of them. Their chart was highlighted in a recent Washington Post article and seems to be gaining traction. Sounds great….right? Um. Nope. Why?
The NASBE chart itself is problematic. It gives little useful information. For example under Florida it simply states “opt outs are not permitted” and explains why. That’s it?
Meanwhile three years ago United Opt Out created 50 state opt out guides, that provide, in DETAIL, current information for each state, written by opt out leaders in those states, and updated annually. Our guides say, “This is what your state legislation says,” and, “this is what you need to do.” Of course, the long and the short of it is this: REFUSE THE TESTS. REFUSE IT ALL. THIS IS AN ACT OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE. In the end it doesn’t matter what your state legislation “permits.” But parents want to be informed. And so the guides try to provide as much information as possible.
So is the information that NASBE publishing (or promoting) actually USEFUL? Not really. It might serve to deter many parents in most of these states, to just give after reading “No opt out permitted” in their state.
The second and more important reason promoting the NASBE guide is problematic (and is probably tied to why it’s basically useless) is WHO NASBE is. Before steering opt out parents to their site folks might do well to know more about NASBE. The partners who fund them include:
Pearson
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
McGraw Hill
ETS
K12 Inc
Wireless Generation
ACT
College Board
Measured Progress
And many, many more…..
Why is Another Corporate-Driven Non-profit Trying to Appear “Opt Out Friendly”?
Again, the opt out narrative is being hijacked. And it’s not the first time. Education Commission of the States(ECS) also created an “opt out guide” and attempted to steer traffic to their website under the guise of appearing supporting of testing refusal. And yet… Closely examine the funders and partners of ECS. The list includes General Electric, State Farm, Amplify, Pearson, Verizon, Corinthean,Another Opt Out Message Being Hijacked - UNITED OPT OUT: The Movement to End Corporate Education Reform:
