PARCC -- What a waste. Can we opt out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm ok with someone opting out if you promise to opt your child out of DC paid SATs and ACTs too.

You can apply to test optional schools. That list gets a little bigger each year.

Fair enough.

DC only pays for those tests because PP's taxes fund them. She's okay with some, she's not okay with others. It's her money paying the bills whether or not her child shows up - get a clue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You folks don't see the irony.

You won't even consider a local school for your darling snowflakes if the test scores aren't high enough, but yet you want to opt out your own children when it's time for them to take those same tests. Hmm...

No kidding. And you like to use the PARCC scores of high performing DC schools to validate your decision not to move to Maryland.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Based on this we'll do the PARCC.

-- OP

Based on this, we won't. We strive to teach our kids to march to a different drummer, privately, not to start movements. Hence, we will meticulously track all manner of absences from 3rd grade next year, prepared to challenge if DCPS sets the attendance police on us for opting out. Civil disobedience may have costs, but they're worth paying if you're acting on contrarian principle out of deeply held beliefs.

I certainly didn't sign up to further enrich Mc-Graw Hill or Pearsons when I enrolled my child in a public school. They make hundreds of millions of dollars testing PS students learning to the Common Core. No thanks.

you're ridiculous.

Do you understand the difference between ad hominem and logic?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There have already been a bunch of threads debating the pros and cons of taking the PARCC. No need to rehash it all here, and no need for so much criticism of those who choose differently.

Why not? Just because your mind is made up doesn't mean everyone else's is. The topic is current, and you're not in charge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You folks don't see the irony.

You won't even consider a local school for your darling snowflakes if the test scores aren't high enough, but yet you want to opt out your own children when it's time for them to take those same tests. Hmm...

No kidding. And you like to use the PARCC scores of high performing DC schools to validate your decision not to move to Maryland.

So what?

I mean, maybe that's true and maybe it isn't but either way - so what? Why are you so invested in controlling other people?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:will your kid bring up the class average or bring it down? If you'll hurt the class average, you are also hurting your child's teacher at a DCPS. At a charter, if enough parents opt out you could put the charter at risk.

I don't understand what you're saying. My SN child in a highly performing school will almost definitely hurt the class average if he takes the exam. So by your reasoning, should we opt out to help the teacher?

Nobody's telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Every family makes that decision for themselves. But it sounds like reducing the teacher's chance at a bonus shouldn't be part of your individual calculus.

That's my point. The PP was saying that a high performing student shouldn't opt out because that would bring the class average down. If tests are valuable, they are valuable for everyone. If they aren't valuable, then they aren't valuable for anyone. Making a decision based on how well you expect your child to do is silly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:will your kid bring up the class average or bring it down? If you'll hurt the class average, you are also hurting your child's teacher at a DCPS. At a charter, if enough parents opt out you could put the charter at risk.

I don't understand what you're saying. My SN child in a highly performing school will almost definitely hurt the class average if he takes the exam. So by your reasoning, should we opt out to help the teacher?

Nobody's telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Every family makes that decision for themselves. But it sounds like reducing the teacher's chance at a bonus shouldn't be part of your individual calculus.

That's my point. The PP was saying that a high performing student shouldn't opt out because that would bring the class average down. If tests are valuable, they are valuable for everyone. If they aren't valuable, then they aren't valuable for anyone. Making a decision based on how well you expect your child to do is silly.

This misses the point that wasting the child's time is what parents object to. I know my child will perform well. I don't care - it's a waste of time that could be spent reading, doing math, playing music, etc. The PARCC is a waste of time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:will your kid bring up the class average or bring it down? If you'll hurt the class average, you are also hurting your child's teacher at a DCPS. At a charter, if enough parents opt out you could put the charter at risk.

I don't understand what you're saying. My SN child in a highly performing school will almost definitely hurt the class average if he takes the exam. So by your reasoning, should we opt out to help the teacher?

Nobody's telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Every family makes that decision for themselves. But it sounds like reducing the teacher's chance at a bonus shouldn't be part of your individual calculus.

That's my point. The PP was saying that a high performing student shouldn't opt out because that would bring the class average down. If tests are valuable, they are valuable for everyone. If they aren't valuable, then they aren't valuable for anyone. Making a decision based on how well you expect your child to do is silly.

This misses the point that wasting the child's time is what parents object to. I know my child will perform well. I don't care - it's a waste of time that could be spent reading, doing math, playing music, etc. The PARCC is a waste of time.

They will be reading, writing and doing math problems. That's what the test is.

[Anonymous]

Op, hope you get to opt out. We don't want to opt out. I don't even know any tests he has taken in 4th grade, so 3 days of testing is fine with me. I actually told him to take it seriously and not make careless mistakes. He got 5s last year, but math wasn't too strong. I have a feeling that his math will be 4 this year. If so, I'd like to figure out why. There is no indication that he struggles or doesn't understand 4th grade math, so I expect the test to test him what he learned in 4th grade.
Playing video games and watching youtube videos is waste of time. He could be reading and writing instead. I don't find Parcc waste of time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op, hope you get to opt out. We don't want to opt out. I don't even know any tests he has taken in 4th grade, so 3 days of testing is fine with me. I actually told him to take it seriously and not make careless mistakes. He got 5s last year, but math wasn't too strong. I have a feeling that his math will be 4 this year. If so, I'd like to figure out why. There is no indication that he struggles or doesn't understand 4th grade math, so I expect the test to test him what he learned in 4th grade.
Playing video games and watching youtube videos is waste of time. He could be reading and writing instead. I don't find Parcc waste of time.

FWIW If he gets a 4 on the test this year, it means he mastered 4th grade math.

A 5 means he was able to complete some problems that more advanced/beyond 4th grade level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:will your kid bring up the class average or bring it down? If you'll hurt the class average, you are also hurting your child's teacher at a DCPS. At a charter, if enough parents opt out you could put the charter at risk.

I don't understand what you're saying. My SN child in a highly performing school will almost definitely hurt the class average if he takes the exam. So by your reasoning, should we opt out to help the teacher?

Nobody's telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Every family makes that decision for themselves. But it sounds like reducing the teacher's chance at a bonus shouldn't be part of your individual calculus.

That's my point. The PP was saying that a high performing student shouldn't opt out because that would bring the class average down. If tests are valuable, they are valuable for everyone. If they aren't valuable, then they aren't valuable for anyone. Making a decision based on how well you expect your child to do is silly.

This misses the point that wasting the child's time is what parents object to. I know my child will perform well. I don't care - it's a waste of time that could be spent reading, doing math, playing music, etc. The PARCC is a waste of time.

This is SO anti-social and not community minded at all. PARCC may be imperfect, but it's 1) something everyone in the school is expected to take part in and 2) provides some benefits in measuring the performance of the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Generally speaking, I think it is a good idea to get kids used to taking standardized tests. They'll be doing it for much higher stakes later on: APs and SAT

That's akin to arguing that if a kid doesn't start taking practice driving tests in ES, they won't be reading for much higher stakes driving tests as teenagers. I was a National Merit Scholarship Finalist who earned 5s on APs, and near perfect SAT scores, yet never took a standardized test before the PSAT. I also attended public schools ranked in the bottom third in my state, in the days before state testing.

If you want your kid to get used to taking standardized tests in ES, you can. Just look up your nearest Prometric Test Center (one downtown, another in Bethesda) and sign up for tests. Many K-5th grade options available, e.g. the SCAT and ACT Junior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:will your kid bring up the class average or bring it down? If you'll hurt the class average, you are also hurting your child's teacher at a DCPS. At a charter, if enough parents opt out you could put the charter at risk.

I don't understand what you're saying. My SN child in a highly performing school will almost definitely hurt the class average if he takes the exam. So by your reasoning, should we opt out to help the teacher?

Nobody's telling you what you should or shouldn't do. Every family makes that decision for themselves. But it sounds like reducing the teacher's chance at a bonus shouldn't be part of your individual calculus.

That's my point. The PP was saying that a high performing student shouldn't opt out because that would bring the class average down. If tests are valuable, they are valuable for everyone. If they aren't valuable, then they aren't valuable for anyone. Making a decision based on how well you expect your child to do is silly.

This misses the point that wasting the child's time is what parents object to. I know my child will perform well. I don't care - it's a waste of time that could be spent reading, doing math, playing music, etc. The PARCC is a waste of time.

This is SO anti-social and not community minded at all. PARCC may be imperfect, but it's 1) something everyone in the school is expected to take part in and 2) provides some benefits in measuring the performance of the school.

So what if everyone is expected to take it? In a democracy, we should be able to follow our own paths to community mindedness. Find another way to boost the performance of the school if you like.

[Anonymous]

For years, the principal, faculty and staff at my kids' school have bent over backwards to help them under various circumstances. If taking a few hours of testing over the course of those same years helps them out, I have no problem with it. It won't hurt my kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op, hope you get to opt out. We don't want to opt out. I don't even know any tests he has taken in 4th grade, so 3 days of testing is fine with me. I actually told him to take it seriously and not make careless mistakes. He got 5s last year, but math wasn't too strong. I have a feeling that his math will be 4 this year. If so, I'd like to figure out why. There is no indication that he struggles or doesn't understand 4th grade math, so I expect the test to test him what he learned in 4th grade.
Playing video games and watching youtube videos is waste of time. He could be reading and writing instead. I don't find Parcc waste of time.

Some of us will opt out, whether or not we "get to," come what may. Great, glad to her you find value in the PARCC.