APS proposes ‘kit’ to opt out of testing
Albuquerque Public Schools is working to create a uniform process for parents who want to remove their children from standardized testing – an effort aimed at combating widespread confusion about “opting out.”
During the APS Board of Education’s policy and instruction committee meeting Wednesday afternoon, administrators outlined a proposal to provide a “tool kit” for schools and parents, which would include an opt-out form, frequently asked questions sheet and calendar of tests by grade level.
The kit would be available on the APS website and in the schools, according to Rose-Ann McKernan, executive director of the APS office of accountability and reporting.
In a presentation on the proposed process – which was only up for discussion Wednesday – she explained that parents who want their kids to skip one or more standardized tests would complete the form and return it to the APS central office or their child’s school.
The central office would keep track of the forms and create a report for each school, listing students who have opted out. Principals would come up with ideas for alternative assignments for nontesting students and submit them to APS administrators.
The goal is to provide parents with “some very straightforward direction,” McKernan said.
She added that she hopes to avoid the uncertainty that arose during the 2014-2015 school year, when the controversial Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers test was administered for the first time. Critics have said that PARCC reduces children to statistics, and is too long and difficult.
Last year, parents requested testing opt-outs for about 4,000 students by communicating with principalsAPS proposes ‘kit’ to opt out of testing | Albuquerque Journal News:
