Res. No. 149
Title
Resolution calling upon the New York City Department of Education not to punish students or parents for opting out of State exams; not to punish schools, principals or teachers if parents opt out of State exams; not to punish superintendents, principals or teachers for informing parents of the right to opt out of State exams; and to provide alternate activities for students who opt out of State exams.
Body
By Council Members Dromm and Levin
Whereas, The federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) enacted in 2002 required that schools annually administer State tests in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics in grades 3-8, and in science at least once during grades 3-5 and 6-9; and
Whereas, Since passage of NCLB, public school systems have spent growing amounts of time, money and energy on high-stakes standardized testing, in which student performance on standardized tests is used to make major decisions affecting individual students, educators and schools; and
Whereas, In December 2015, NCLB was replaced by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA); and
Whereas, While ESSA allows states greater flexibility in determining school accountability measures, both academic and non-academic, it maintains the requirement that schools annually administer State ELA and math tests in grades 3-8, and in science at least once during elementary, middle, and high school; and
Whereas, Many educators assert that the overreliance on high-stakes standardized testing undermines educational quality and equity in U.S. public schools by hampering teachers' efforts to focus on the broad range of learning experiences that promote innovation, creativity, problem solving, and critical thinking; and
Whereas, Additionally, critics contend that the over-emphasis on standardized testing has resulted in narrowing of the curriculum, teaching to the test, reducing time for learning, pushing students out of school, driving excellent teachers out...
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