FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday says school districts cannot honor requests from parents who want to opt their children out of participating in standardized tests.
According to the Lexington Herald-Leader (https://bit.ly/1DrGFOA), Holliday sent an email to superintendents saying students who don’t participate in assessments will receive a “0’’ score, and that will be part of the school’s accountability calculation.
“Kentucky’s statewide accountability system depends on the testing of every student,” Holliday wrote. “No student may opt out of the standardized assessments conducted under this system. The purpose of testing every student is to ensure that all schools and districts are serving all students and that gaps in categories of students are identified, addressed and closed.”
He encouraged district officials to review policies and to communicate them to parents. Holliday sent a similar message to superintendents last year.
Nancy Rodriguez, education department spokeswoman, said last week that a couple of districts had sought guidance on how to handle such requests this year.
Laura Arrasmith of Mason County says she has requested to opt out her children from the statewide testing assessment that takes place during a district’s last 14 instructional days. She says she is in touch with other parents who feel the same way.
“We’ve been using the word opt out, but we really need to use the word refuse - we are refusing,” she said.
Terry Donoghue, a member of Kentuckians Against Common Core, said the group isn’t urging families to opt out of testing but says they are protected by the U.S. Constitution if that’s the route they choose.
Todd Allen, the assistant general counsel for the education department, said in a statement that parents can opt out of public education completely, but they can’t stay in public schools and choose which provisions to follow and which to disregard.
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Information from: Lexington Herald-Leader, https://www.kentucky.com
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