The Bane of Public Education

Have I said before how much I hate the PSSAs? For those of you not from Pennsylvania, PSSA stands for the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment. It's a standardized test used to check our No Child Left Behind status. Starting in 3rd grade students must take these tests. It's the law. When we signed up with PA Cyber, we agreed to have JT take the tests in the spring. I knew it would be inconvenient in some ways (we have to travel to a test site) but I had no idea how irritating it would become.

For the last couple months, the school has had a clock counting down to the date for the tests on their website. It's counting the SECONDS until the test. Then in the last couple weeks we started getting emails reminding us of our need to do well on the tests. Notes to tell us that if kids don't test well, the school will not be allowed to renew it's charter and we'll all be stuck with no choice but return to the dreadful places from which we came.

First of all, even if the school folded I wouldn't dream of going back to our local district. I would either choose a new cyber school or do traditional homeschooling. More work, but not the end of the world.

Second, I have seen the questions on these tests. I don't think they prove much about what any child has learned. I could rant all day about the way these tests have caused endless review for most children and no real teaching in our schools, but that wouldn't change anything.

Finally, the school has decided one of the reason their test scores were down last year was because they did the testing in only 2 days. Now we will have to travel an hour away from home, arriving before 9am, for three days straight! Each day the kids will only be testing for about 2 hours. Then we drive home and come back the next day. No reimbursement for travel. I don't know what I am supposed to do while all of this is going on.

So, I sent a slightly annoyed email to our Instructional Supervisor. She soothed me with the, "I understand", but also reminded me that we signed a paper at registration that said he would take the test. She has promised to work to allow JT to take 2 sections of the test one day, so that we only have to travel 2 days. Still not a perfect solution, but improving. A friend shared an email she received from the school. Her IS pointed out that the kids will no longer be allowed to leave the room before the time is up, even if they have finished the test. They are hoping it will make the kids look over their answers again. I can tell them what JT will do.....fidget in his chair (if he even stays seated through most of the test), make noises and probably distract the other kids who are still working. I will need to find out if his psych evaluation that listed his hyperactivity as "significant" can get him a get out of jail free card.

The frustrations of dealing with the system are starting to irk me. I wonder how many years it will be before I am ready to go solo?