Opting out of PARCC

[Anonymous]

I have no intentions of allowing my kids to take PARCC this year. Please don't believe the hype about schools needing the "data". This data isn't as useful to teachers for driving their future instruction as some would have us believe. Assess the kids to plan accordingly for closing learning gaps...yes. Parcc...no. Thanks for coming to my TedTalk!

[Anonymous]

Anyone know if Basis will let you opt out?

[Anonymous]

What harm will it do for your kids to take PARCC? It's not like they'll get extra instruction time.

[Anonymous]

Op here. One of my kids struggles with anxiety. He got 4s on last years parcc, but it wasn't worth his negative feelings toward it. The other tests fine, but I just don't believe in the premise of this test. I also think PARCC is not the best assessment out there. I think DC should ditch it like other states have. Why are they pushing to take this test when kids have already had a difficult year? What is the purpose of it other than financial perks to the companies?

[Anonymous]

No DC public school will tell you that you can opt out. You simply do it if you want. The only tool admins have to come at you with us attendance, meaning no threat whatsoever this year if your kid continues to log in daily. We’ve opted out of PARCC several times without facing consequences despite having been told we couldn’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No DC public school will tell you that you can opt out. You simply do it if you want. The only tool admins have to come at you with us attendance, meaning no threat whatsoever this year if your kid continues to log in daily. We’ve opted out of PARCC several times without facing consequences despite having been told we couldn’t.

Thanks for this. I've always wanted to opt out but didn't have the guts. Kudos to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No DC public school will tell you that you can opt out. You simply do it if you want. The only tool admins have to come at you with us attendance, meaning no threat whatsoever this year if your kid continues to log in daily. We’ve opted out of PARCC several times without facing consequences despite having been told we couldn’t.

Thanks for this. I've always wanted to opt out but didn't have the guts. Kudos to you.

+1

Just don't have your kid attend on PARCC days.

[Anonymous]

As someone who has been DEEP IN IT with education research, assessment, and covid, yes, they want you to take the tests. No, there is absolutely no benefit to you or your child. Frankly even the people at the highest levels realize there is very little validity to the results this year. This is a result of the fact that the opt outs are non-random, the tests weren't meant to be done online, the students aren't prepared for this situation, many children don't have the lexical/technical abilities to perform to the best of their ability, many have received non-systematic instruction, etc. I can keep going on. This means that you opting out has little impact overall

As someone involved with education research, I should encourage you to participate. As a reasonable human being who has children who I know and love, no. There's no good reason to subject them to that this year.

[Anonymous]

Oh brother. Standardized tests too stressful for your children? Just have your kids take the exam but don’t tell them their scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh brother. Standardized tests too stressful for your children? Just have your kids take the exam but don’t tell them their scores.

This year YES!

[Anonymous]

I always loved taking standardized tests as a kid. I thought it was a fun challenge like a logic problem or crossword.

[Anonymous]

Seems like you have decided to opt out based on what's best for your child. I agree, Parcc is a horrible test. I didn't even know that they had to take it this year.
DC is going to take the test for several reasons. I cannot find one reason not take it. In fact, it's a good escape from the group work, projects and presentations. He has no anxiety about taking tests. I have no high expectations other than "do your best". He learned very little this year and I would like to see if it shows up in Parcc results.
It's not like he is so smart or bright or hard-working, but he had mastered that test years ago, and if it helps teachers (schools, administrators), he is the perfect kid to take the test. I do trust that the teachers know he knows how to take that test and not confuse it with what he has learned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I always loved taking standardized tests as a kid. I thought it was a fun challenge like a logic problem or crossword.

Yeah, this was me too. But if I had a kid who stressed out over tests, I would keep them home. It’s definitely not worth getting anxious over this year.

I do think if you can keep it low stakes, getting kids used to taking standardized tests can help in the long run. It’s a useful skill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. One of my kids struggles with anxiety. He got 4s on last years parcc, but it wasn't worth his negative feelings toward it. The other tests fine, but I just don't believe in the premise of this test. I also think PARCC is not the best assessment out there. I think DC should ditch it like other states have. Why are they pushing to take this test when kids have already had a difficult year? What is the purpose of it other than financial perks to the companies?

4 is an excellent score. Stop being dramatic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here. One of my kids struggles with anxiety. He got 4s on last years parcc, but it wasn't worth his negative feelings toward it. The other tests fine, but I just don't believe in the premise of this test. I also think PARCC is not the best assessment out there. I think DC should ditch it like other states have. Why are they pushing to take this test when kids have already had a difficult year? What is the purpose of it other than financial perks to the companies?

4 is an excellent score. Stop being dramatic.

You missed PPs point. She’s not saying a 4 is a bad score, she’s saying that despite getting a good score, her child had a lot of unnecessary anxiety around the tests.

Young kids are over tested, that’s for sure. What would be nice is if we could not only have the option of skipping the tests, but if curriculums weren’t crafted primarily to boost test scores.