Post by Moses on May 13, 2004 11:08:25 GMT -5
The neo-con Demo-Republican Testing Regime is being imposed nation-wide:
'No more tiers,' Protesters Say: Parents, Students Criticize Three-Level Diploma System
[Three cheers for the parents. Where are the teachers? Where are the Democrats?!]
Several dozen parents and children rallied outside Legislative Hall on Wednesday, calling on lawmakers to scuttle a system requiring three types of diplomas to be issued to high school graduates, based on standardized test scores.
Toting signs that read "No More Tiers" and wearing T-shirts that stated "Don't label me, just teach me," the group urged legislators to halt the three-tiered diploma system the General Assembly mandated in 2001. They said lawmakers should reconsider the entire Delaware Student Testing Program that governs grade promotion and which type of diploma students earn.
The diploma system requires that graduates be given one of three types of diploma: basic, standard and distinguished, depending on exams given in the 10th grade. The exams can be retaken in later years. The tiered diplomas were to be issued for the first time this year.
"We know one test should not determine everything about a child," Wilmington parent Yvonne Johnson, of the Advocates for Children's Education grassroots group, told a crowd of onlookers that included Republican gubernatorial candidates Bill Lee and Mike Protack.
Critics contend the diploma system is unfair because it doesn't take into account a student's entire academic performance. They said that diplomas marked "basic" could follow students beyond high school, hurting them psychologically and professionally.
Others have claimed the system was discriminatory because three-quarters of the state's black, Hispanic and low-income high school graduates would receive the lowest tier of diplomas. More than 50 percent of graduates this year were to receive basic diplomas.
Rally supporters Wednesday had some reason to celebrate because lawmakers are moving toward a one-year moratorium.
The Senate on Tuesday quickly passed a bill delaying implementation of three-tiered diplomas for a year. Seniors would receive a regular Delaware diploma, some with a distinguished sticker, this year.
Senate Bill 285 is scheduled for a vote today in the House. House leaders have said the bill will be approved and Gov. Ruth Ann Minner, a supporter of the three-tiered program, has said she will agree to the moratorium. She has ordered a study of the testing program by two panels of outside experts.
Several lawmakers spoke at the rally Wednesday, saying they would do what they could to re-evaluate the three-tiered diploma issue and the entire testing program.
"We'll do our best to keep this issue in front of the General Assembly," said Rep. Pamela Maier, R-Drummond Hill, who has introduced a bill that would require the state to include other factors in determining what diploma students receive.
One legislator even made an apology.
"The General Assembly made a ridiculous decision and approved the three-tiered diploma," said Rep. Deborah Hudson, R-Fairthorne. "I apologize. I voted for that. It was in haste. We didn't know what was going to happen."
Parents and students who attended the rally said they are glad the state is going to delay the program this year. But many said they want the diploma system and the state testing program to be eliminated. [YES!!!!!!!!]
Eileen Snyder, who has a 10-year-old daughter and a 16-year-old son, said educators should look at more than testing performance. "Look at the transcripts. That's what the purpose of 12 years of education is," she said.
Snyder said lawmakers should do away with the testing program to spare parents and children anxiety.
She said her daughter, who took state tests for the first time last year in the third grade, was so frustrated that she questioned her intelligence and had nightmares about monsters.
"The monster was the Delaware Student Testing Program," Snyder said.
Reach Chip Guy at 856-7373 or cguy@delawareonline.com.
— Chip Guy
The News Journal
2004-05-13
www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2004/05/13nomoretiers%2Cpro.html
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'No more tiers,' Protesters Say: Parents, Students Criticize Three-Level Diploma System
[Three cheers for the parents. Where are the teachers? Where are the Democrats?!]
Several dozen parents and children rallied outside Legislative Hall on Wednesday, calling on lawmakers to scuttle a system requiring three types of diplomas to be issued to high school graduates, based on standardized test scores.
Toting signs that read "No More Tiers" and wearing T-shirts that stated "Don't label me, just teach me," the group urged legislators to halt the three-tiered diploma system the General Assembly mandated in 2001. They said lawmakers should reconsider the entire Delaware Student Testing Program that governs grade promotion and which type of diploma students earn.
The diploma system requires that graduates be given one of three types of diploma: basic, standard and distinguished, depending on exams given in the 10th grade. The exams can be retaken in later years. The tiered diplomas were to be issued for the first time this year.
"We know one test should not determine everything about a child," Wilmington parent Yvonne Johnson, of the Advocates for Children's Education grassroots group, told a crowd of onlookers that included Republican gubernatorial candidates Bill Lee and Mike Protack.
Critics contend the diploma system is unfair because it doesn't take into account a student's entire academic performance. They said that diplomas marked "basic" could follow students beyond high school, hurting them psychologically and professionally.
Others have claimed the system was discriminatory because three-quarters of the state's black, Hispanic and low-income high school graduates would receive the lowest tier of diplomas. More than 50 percent of graduates this year were to receive basic diplomas.
Rally supporters Wednesday had some reason to celebrate because lawmakers are moving toward a one-year moratorium.
The Senate on Tuesday quickly passed a bill delaying implementation of three-tiered diplomas for a year. Seniors would receive a regular Delaware diploma, some with a distinguished sticker, this year.
Senate Bill 285 is scheduled for a vote today in the House. House leaders have said the bill will be approved and Gov. Ruth Ann Minner, a supporter of the three-tiered program, has said she will agree to the moratorium. She has ordered a study of the testing program by two panels of outside experts.
Several lawmakers spoke at the rally Wednesday, saying they would do what they could to re-evaluate the three-tiered diploma issue and the entire testing program.
"We'll do our best to keep this issue in front of the General Assembly," said Rep. Pamela Maier, R-Drummond Hill, who has introduced a bill that would require the state to include other factors in determining what diploma students receive.
One legislator even made an apology.
"The General Assembly made a ridiculous decision and approved the three-tiered diploma," said Rep. Deborah Hudson, R-Fairthorne. "I apologize. I voted for that. It was in haste. We didn't know what was going to happen."
Parents and students who attended the rally said they are glad the state is going to delay the program this year. But many said they want the diploma system and the state testing program to be eliminated. [YES!!!!!!!!]
Eileen Snyder, who has a 10-year-old daughter and a 16-year-old son, said educators should look at more than testing performance. "Look at the transcripts. That's what the purpose of 12 years of education is," she said.
Snyder said lawmakers should do away with the testing program to spare parents and children anxiety.
She said her daughter, who took state tests for the first time last year in the third grade, was so frustrated that she questioned her intelligence and had nightmares about monsters.
"The monster was the Delaware Student Testing Program," Snyder said.
Reach Chip Guy at 856-7373 or cguy@delawareonline.com.
— Chip Guy
The News Journal
2004-05-13
www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/local/2004/05/13nomoretiers%2Cpro.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------