Palm Beach pushes back against FCAT, so should Duval

From the Sun Sentinel, by Marc Freemen

Fed up with the FCAT and high-stakes standardized testing, the Palm Beach County School Board wants to join a growing national campaign to reduce the demands on students and teachers.

"We need to do something to stop this madness in our schools," School Board Chairman Frank Barbieri said, urging local officials to send that message to state and federal legislators.

Testing season is in full swing, as schools this week look to wrap up the reading, math and science sections of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. End-of-course exams are also due to get underway.

Board members say they've been besieged by complaints from families and educators, who blame testing mandates for causing health problems for children and taking away too much instructional time.

"Students are so upset and anxious they are losing their hair, they're not eating, they're not sleeping," board member Karen Brill said.

Along with measuring student performance in core academic areas, the results are used for school and district ratings, some teacher merit pay plans, and school financial rewards.

While they are not advocating the removal of standardized tests, board members and advocates argue the requirements are counter productive.

"As a board and a district, we need to mitigate the damage of this obsession with high-stakes testing," Brill said. "We need to create well-rounded students; we need to nurture creativity; we need to find balance so that our teachers have the freedom to exercise their talents and bring out the best in our students."

Rita Solnet, an education activist from west of Boca Raton, said various national groups and education leaders are waging war against an "over-emphasis" on high-stakes testing.

"We're spending so much time on test prep and testing," said the co-founder of a group called Parents Across America.

She cited an April 17 letter from Mary Broderick, president of the National School Boards Association, to President Obama. Broderick wrote experience and research shows "relentlessly focusing on standardized tests erodes our national competitiveness and deadens curiosity and drive."

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-fcat-frenzy-changes-palm-20120423,0,5187771.story