I wrote an open letter to Governor Scott and former governor Crist. I sent it to several newspapers on Friday but it didnt get published, so I am going to post it here. Please, please share so that it might reach them. I think educators, parents and citizens would like to know where they stand with regard to the testing of students in the Florida public schools. Thanks so much. Susan September 13, 2014 An Open Letter to Governor Scott and former Governor Crist: I am the Kindergarten teacher who refuses to administer the FAIR test to my students due to the great amount of instructional time that would be lost. I would be more than happy to sit with either of you to answer any questions you may have regarding this issue. I have emailed this to you, Governor Scott, and sent a similar invitation to you, Mr. Crist. I have yet to hear from either of you. In my email to you on Wednesday, Governor Scott, I also invited you to come visit one of my fellow Kindergarten teachers as she administers a complete FAIR test to one of our kindergartners. I think you might be surprised at the difficulty of the content of the test, along with the issues of time, use of technology and the problem of what to do with the other children while the testing is going on. It seems quite doubtful that this Kindergarten FAIR assessment was field tested in a school setting. I would also invite you to read the manual before you come, to see what is in print with regard to how we administer the test. Will the new Florida Standards Assessment (replacing the FCAT), which I understand is still under development, be field-tested? I understand children in 4th grade will be required to write numerous essays in a short time frame using the computer. This assumes all 4th graders have typing skills. I beg you to reduce big government. Allow the counties to decide on which assessments they need to give. Trust teachers and administrators. Mr. Crist, I have not heard from you either. I, of course, understand that both of you get a high volume of emails and messages. Hence, I am writing this open letter to the two of you where hopefully it will be seen. As I stated in my Facebook message to you, to be completely honest, I am not a fan of either of you. What has become of education is dishonorable. The last good governor we had who cared about children and education was Lawton Chiles. I am proud to say I teach at Lawton Chiles Elementary School. How much money has been poured into testing, only to have the tests changed and made more difficult? How many new tests have been designed and implemented just since you have been in office, Governor Scott? Do you know that the talk in the teachers’ lounges is that ‘Surely someone in the testing business must be in financial cahoots with government officials.’ I don’t know if that is true. It’s just talk. But I don’t think you can deny that those making the tests and those making new curriculum to support what will be on the tests have had a great deal of job security in recent years. Fortunately, for the voters of Florida this is an election year. It is my hope that at least one of you will change your previous ways and look for opportunities to allow children to learn to love learning. It is my hope that instead of beating down teachers by tests at every turn, forcing instruction driven by the tests, that you would place your faith in teachers to provide creative lessons that encourage children to love to learn. Teachers work long hours, pouring themselves into their children. These days they are discouraged that they aren’t allowed to really teach. Dismantle the DOE and form COE’s – County Offices of Education. Give the power back to the people. It may surprise you to know that I am not a political person, nor have I been rebellious in any way in the past. I am an introvert and did not take this stance to get attention, and in fact, am very uncomfortable with the amount of attention it has drawn to me. But this is not about one teacher, one school or one county. I represent the voice of many educators all over the state. Read my Facebook page and the pages of others who have shared my posts. Tabulate the number of responses that are positive to the number of responses that are negative. I think you will see that my act of civil disobedience strikes a chord with teachers and parents alike. To fellow educators, parents and even to the young people who have had the high-stakes testing as part of your educational experience: I urge you to write to Governor Scott, Mr. Crist, and your elected officials at the state and national level. Let them know your stance. It just needs to be a single sentence, not an eloquent essay. However, if you have a little time, just give one anecdote of how testing has affected you, your students, or your children. We are a voice of many. It is not only our right, but also our responsibility to let our voices be heard. Respectfully, but with a sprinkling of frustration, Susan Bowles
Posted on: Mon, 15 Sep 2014 00:00:30 +0000
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