For those who have been following my correspondence with the school... I waited a week to respond to the last email. I sent it last night. I am not even going to lie, your response irritated me Mrs. Gilder. This is the reason I have taken so long to respond. I am going to try and explain why. First and foremost let me say, I truly respect your position and your background in education. I know that there has to be something on the inside that has made you question what is going on. There are a lot of things that I am clueless about. However, I have been reaching out to YOU, ALL, and I dont feel like I am getting basic information. If you have a parent who is asking you questions and trying to become aware of what is going on in her childs education- I would think that would be encouraging. I realize that you all probably think all I want is to stir up trouble but I really just want to be informed about what is happening with my child for the seven hours a day that I am not with her. I have never felt the need to question it before. After all I have read and learned the fact that you seem to think this is ok is cause for me to be concerned. I have honestly spent countless nights up reading and researching. I work in a law office! Research and reading is kinda my thing. What I have learned has troubled me to my core. My entire life and time have been consumed with this. I dont read opinion articles and editorial columns. I read and research FACTS and the facts are troubling. What have you done to help inform me??? I have received nothing from any of you to this day. If you know I am concerned and trying to understand, HELP ME OUT! Please. Help me understand it from your side. I have TOLD you that I am concerned with the assessments and that I do not want my child taking assessment tests. I dont care how many years you have used the test, this is the first year I have asked you about them and expressed a concern. You said There was no preparation for this test. There is no grade taken on the test. I want to understand why my child was taken from classroom instruction time to take an assessment test that her mother has asked for her not to be given and that isnt for a grade. Lexi had a dentist appt Thurs morning and we expected her to be out for the rest of the day. She ended up being fine and her father called me about what to do. I told him that she needed to be at school because they are learning so quickly that she needs all the class time she can get. Can you imagine my surprise to find out she was sent to the office to take the test she missed that morning and STILL missed that class time. Not only did she take an assessment test but she did so in the office without a teacher. I get that teachers cant answer questions (another thing I think is ridiculous with EIGHT year old children) but she wasnt in a classroom with everyone else taking this test. She did so alone. This all makes me angry Mrs. Gilder. You say there was no preparation for this test but I disagree with that as well. They practiced for this test Mrs. Gilder. I heard about this big test coming a couple days before it was given. They did prepare for this test. In your second response you said I thought you were asking me if the test said CC. It did not. I felt like you were mincing words with me, Mrs. GIlder. I am sure the test said the words Common Core State Standards somewhere on it bc I was told so by students. I would like to know exactly what tests will be administered to my child this year. My original email asked for a detailed description of the CASE21 and names of any other tests she will be taking. My second email asked for names and dates. I have received nothing from any of you about that. Lexi will not be taking the MCT2. I want to know when it is given and if I will need to keep her home for the day. Is this test for a grade and if so what alternative is there? Is CASE21 used to evaluate teachers? I refuse for Alexis to take any test for teacher evaluation as I feel it is a ridiculous and unfair way of assessing a teachers ability to teach. Darnell, Kuykendall... I asked if the district makes parents aware of assessments tests their children will be taking and if not, WHY! Could you please give me a response about that. I asked for information about the option of opting out of the collection of directory information or opting out of any and all data collection. Understand, I am not trying to make your jobs harder... but my LIFE has been much harder since these changes and if you can look me in my face and tell me they are a good thing (as you have done) then you should do your part to prove that to me bc I am not convinced. Many of the things we discussed during our meeting were either things that you were unaware of or things questions that you could not answer. You both seemed to take notes during this meeting yet I have not had anyone try to get back in touch with me about any of those things. How can you defend or advocate something you obviously dont know that much about. Is there anyone who has been appointed to research all aspects of CC. The creators? The corporations? The profits? The costs? The developmental appropriateness of the elementary standards? Why certain experts refused to sign off and then were stricken from the record? Gilder and Darnell, did you even look into the names I mentioned?? Are you all aware of what the other states are finding and doing in regards to CCSS? WHY they are doing those things? Is there anyone there who has knowledge of the history of similar education reforms in our country? The data that is collected using these living tests will be linked with the US Dept of Educ. This whole thing is about money and corporations making money. Have you yourselves looked into the opposition? What are you doing to be sure this is what is BEST for our children. Just because I cannot help but share what info I can- when I can... I got the impression that Gilder and Darnell do not believe CCSS are a federal takeover of education. Here is PROOF otherwise. This will take you to the transcript of a speech Arne Duncan gave at a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) meet in France in 2010. unesco.usmission.gov/duncan-remarks.html In this speech he says, Traditionally, the federal government in the U.S. has had a limited role in education policy. Before the 1960s, almost all policymaking and education funding was a state and local responsibility. In the mid-1960s, the federal role expanded to include enforcing civil rights laws to ensure that poor, minority, and disabled students, as well as English language learners, had access to a high-quality education. As the federal role in education grew, so did the bureaucracy.... and The Obama administration has sought to fundamentally shift the federal role, so that the Department is doing much more to support reform and innovation in states, districts, and local communities.... and In March of 2009, President Obama called on the nation’s governors and state school chiefs to “develop standards and assessments that don’t simply measure whether students can fill in a bubble on a test, but whether they possess 21st century skills like problem-solving and critical thinking and entrepreneurship and creativity.” Who would that be? NGA and CCSSO? Copyright holders of the CCSS? To further back that up here is a link to the UNESCO website. The United States page. CCSS is listed under Federal. Why would that be? This is the International Bureau of Education in the United Nations. What are we to think of that? ibe.unesco.org/en/worldwide/unesco-regions/europe-and-north-america/united-states/curricular-resources.html Do you still think this isnt a federal takeover of education? I hope you understand I am only doing what I feel is best.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Apr 2014 12:57:50 +0000
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