In his final days as governor, Bruce Rauner’s Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is trying to rush through a rule change that would increase unfair testing burdens on schools and target high school students who exercise their right to opt out of state standardized tests.
Email ISBE today and explain how this change would hurt your students and school!
ISBE’s continuing focus on standardized testing has exacerbated the inequities in Illinois’ public schools, particularly in communities of color and high-poverty schools. The federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which replaced the failed No Child Left Behind (NCLB), was designed to address those inequities. It also gave students the right to opt out of unnecessary, wasteful standardized tests.
The proposed changes to Part 1.30 rules would deny them that right by forcing high school students to take a final standardized test to graduate. The changes would also make testing and the associated paperwork even more burdensome for schools.
The public comment period on the proposed changes is open through December 3. Act now to tell ISBE why they’re a bad idea.
The IFT strongly believes the proposed rule change would increase the importance of flawed standardized testing and amplify NCLB’s harmful approach to public school accountability based on high-stakes assessments, sorting, ranking, and sanctioning of schools.
Stop ISBE from making these harmful, unnecessary changes.
Fill in your name and email address below, then click “Start Writing.” Enter your message to explain how standardized testing has harmed your students and school. To be sure you get ISBE’s attention, it is important to describe your own thoughts and personal experiences.
Educators and parents understand that learning is much more than a test score. Please send ISBE that message TODAY!
