Almost 88,000 students who are in their third grade in Long Island, New York, boycotted their math exams on April 13. About 80 schools in this city out of 124 refused to follow the State's standardized Common Core math test.
Newsday reported 53 percent of third graders who are eligible for the said test decided not to take it even when these tests were mandated by the state. The statistics of students in Long Island alone who refused to take these standardized exams have increased compared to last year's 1.4 percent.
A photo posted by Xian Barrett (@xianb8) on Apr 16, 2016 at 7:41pm PDT
The Today Show's website also reported it, saying that parents had something to do with their kids' refusal to the tests. Apparently, they doubt the use of these Common Core exams so they decided to keep their kids from taking them.
A mom from Long Island explained in her interview with the show that the Common Core tests are harming their kids. Their refusal to take the said exams is their way of showing they are in protest against the Department of Education's current system. Even some teachers are agreeing with these parents saying that these Common Core tests are for a corporate agenda.
Long Island is not the only city in New York who is against these Common Core tests. In fact, an "opt out" movement was even made to call out the attention of the Department of Education. This movement is growing in numbers since 200,000 students were recorded to have not taken the test in York last year. This has also reached Chicago that has 20,000 students declining the tests.
The rules on Common Core tests differ from state to state, as well as the consequences that await the students for not taking them. California is among the states that allow parents to exempt their kids from standardized exams. Meanwhile, Louisiana is stricter that students could go back another grade if they refused to take the Common Core exams.
Do you think your children are not safe from the state's Common Core tests? Would you be one of those parents who would join the "opt out" movement? Tell us what you think about it in the comments section below.
