Test Mutiny: Tens of Thousands of N.Y. Parents Protest Standardized Exams

Tens of thousands of parents took a stand against the education agenda of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and standardized tests nationwide by having their children boycott one such exam in mid-April. In some districts, abstention levels reached 80 percent.

“Democracy Now!” reports:

Protest organizers say at least 155,000 pupils opted out — and that is with only half of school districts tallied so far. … More than a decade after the passage of No Child Left Behind, educators, parents and students nationwide are protesting the preponderant reliance on high-stakes standardized testing, saying it gives undue importance to ambiguous data and compromises learning in favor of test prep.

“Democracy Now!” discusses the revolt with Jack Bierwirth, superintendent of Herricks Public Schools in Long Island, and parent Toni Smith-Thompson, who led the boycott against standardized testing at Central Park East 1 Elementary School in East Harlem.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.