The community is invited to a forum on education Saturday where
state assessment tests such as the Sat-9 and the high school exit
exam will be discussed.
The community is invited to a forum on education Saturday where state assessment tests such as the Sat-9 and the high school exit exam will be discussed.
This year, the Sat-9 turns into the Cat 6 for assessment purposes, but educators and politicians are still divided on the validity of the tests. The forum is being held to encourage dialogue among parents, teachers and educators.
“Our hope is to create dialogue between professionals and parents. We want people to voice their concerns,” said Joe Navarro, a member of Parents and Students for Educational Justice and a teacher at Sunnyslope School.
Eric Mar, a member of the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education, will be a guest speaker.
The board eventually sued the state over Sat-9 testing and won. Now, English as a Second Language students who have received instruction in English for less than 30 months can be granted a waiver from the test, Navarro said.
The SFUSD board was one of the first boards to come out against the California High School Exit Exam, joining the Los Angeles Board of Education.
“They were the pioneers in this whole struggle,” Navarro said. “… (Maybe Mar) will convince some educators to take a stand. Mar is their peer.”
While most people support accountability of schools, they feel the current tests do not measure what’s being taught and fail to provide immediate feedback, Navarro said.
“Most people want exams that are more useful to measure how we teach,” he said. “We want feedback that’s more immediate and we don’t want week-long tests.”
Some teachers have noticed pressure to teach to the tests, causing an emphasis on reading, writing and language arts. This can lead to skimping on subjects like art, science and history, Navarro said.
The stress levels among teachers and students alike illustrate the high-stakes nature of the state’s accountability tests, he said.
“There’s so much at stake. The state demands the same kind of results from everyone. That’s not realistic,” he said. “The goal should be to help students learn, not politicize the issue.”
The forum will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday in the multi-purpose room at Sunnyslope School, Sunnyslope Road at Memorial Drive. The event is sponsored by Parents and Students for Educational Justice, the San Benito County LULAC Council, Californians for Justice, Amy Holland, Clete Bradford and Navarro.
