AMES: Public Schools Seek to Limit Accountability by Reducing-Eliminating Student Testing

PART III in a Series: Tests are created from SBOE-adopted State Standards By Bill Ames Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas  There is a significant movement among many Texas parents and educators to reduce or even eliminate student testing. Complaints arise from allegedly excessive time spent teaching to the test" rather than on learning activities". However it is a fact that the tests are created from the SBOE-adopted state standards and it is obvious that if the local curriculum reflects the state standards the material will be covered in daily lessons. My observation however is that significant class time is rather devoted to teaching politically correct non-mandated topics:

• Global warming
• Corporate greed
• Celebration of earth day etc.

Because of these ventures into PC-land cramming" sessions are required to cover mandated material that has been neglected. Education administrators favoring reduction of testing (and its companion reduction of accountability) lobby parents to become useful idiots" to support the reduction/elimination of tests that the kids have not been prepared to pass. Legislative Actions:

- Resist the legions of educators and parents that descend on Austin to lobby for reduction or elimination of testing. Rather support district-level taxpayers whose only input regarding proper use of their tax dollars is reflected in student academic performance as indicated by the prescribed tests.

Read more by Bill Ames:

• More than School Testing: THE TEXAS COMMISSION ON NEXT GENERATION ASSESSMENTS & ACCOUNTABILITY
• Texas Public Schools De-Emphasize Academic Knowledge in Favor of Unproven Fads
• Texas Educators Ideology & Visions" Penalize Students
• AMES: Texas Trounces the Lefts War on History
• Education UPDATE: Texas ISDs Should Comply with Texas Social Studies Standards
• A Conservatives Guide to Education in Texas 84th Legislative Session
• APUSH Provides Contempt for America in Texas High Schools
• CSCOPE The Obamacare of Texas Public Education
• Happy Birthday America … We hate you!
• A Series on CSCOPE Part 3: Common Core Project Based Learning Damages Texas Students

Bill Ames is an education activist who lives in Dallas. His book TEXAS TROUNCES THE  LEFTS WAR ON HISTORY"  (WNAenterprises.com) tells the story of his experience in developing Texas U. S. history standard in 2009-2010.  Ames reviewed CSCOPE lessons as part of the State Board of Educations Ad Hoc Committee Project. His work in his local school district resulted in Board reviews of both its Social Studies Curriculum and Project Based Learning implementation as well as securing a superintendent commitment to modify the AP History course to be Texas standards (TEKS) compliant. He welcomes reader comments at billames@prodigy.net