Two links to video from the Meet the Candidate Night:
http://portjefferson.patch.com/articles/video-meet-alexandra-gordon#video-5928690
http://portjefferson.patch.com/articles/video-question-for-alexandra-gordon#video-5933083
Saturday, May 7, 2011
On Friday, I met with Senator Ken LaValle in his Selden office. After several attempts and scheduling conflicts, this was our first meeting. Senator LaValle is a senior member of the New York State Senate, and Chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee. Though he was previously a teacher for 4th and 5th grade, and an Elementary Principal, Senator La Valle's expertise in education legislation at this point is clearly Post-Secondary Education.
After my initial introduction and a brief explanation of my concerns (essentially the same as in my previous meetings with Assemblyman Englebright and Congressman Bishop), Senator LaValle asked me if I had ever heard of the Truth in Testing Law. Senator LaValle wrote the legislation back in 1979, and it took effect in New York State in 1980. He gave me a brief explanation of the law, and the reason it was written. The Senator said that there are always concerns about biases in exams such as the SAT's and ACT's as well as MCAT's and LSAT's. This law requires the test writing company to share with the test taker the questions they answered incorrectly, along with the correct answer. This allows for students to learn from their mistakes and for others to see if there were cultural, gender, or economic biases at all. That was my first clue that we were not on the same page. While I appreciate the Truth in Testing Law, and I am sure it has been helpful to students for many years, my concerns lie in the standardized tests our younger children are taking annually which are causing undue stress. I have many, many concerns about Education today, but in order to be effective at sparking change, I must pick my battles. The SAT's and test like them are not my current battle.
The Senator did agree with me on many fronts: all children do not learn the same, nor do they test the same. Not every child will be as successful as the next. The pressure on our Administrators, teachers and most importantly students is absurd. He does believe the pendulum will begin to swing back away from testing. I told him I've been waiting for years to see that start to happen, and I can't sit and wait anymore.
The Senator told me that he believes the Federal Government has no business in education, as it is written in every state's constitution that the State is charged with providing Education. He also said that the funding New York State gets from the Federal government is approximately 6% of the Education budget in the State. And I can tell you that the funding the Comsewogue School District gets from New York State is barely 28% of our budget... so we are faced with an overwhelming amount of underfunding all around.
Senator LaValle said the reason for the testing frenzy is simple. It boils down to this: We spend a fortune on education, what do we get for that money? So in an effort to figure that out, we begin testing, and more testing, which by the way costs a lot of money also! He also told me that the Board of Regents is responsible for the current Education policy in New York State, which I am well aware of. I told the Senator that I had sent letters to the Long Island Regent, Roger Tilles on the issues of testing and unfunded mandates, and got no response. Senator LaValle said he will make a point to have Regent Tilles get in touch with me. I will be following up on that promise weekly.
I told Senator LaValle that I have never been a fighter. I just didn't have it in me. But this is a fight I can't back down from. I am in this for my own children, and everyone else's. I told him I wasn't going away, and as long as it takes, I'll be calling him and all of my other representatives. Then he told me a brief story he used to share when he taught law as a college professor: Once there was a Mom, who stopped Wal-Mart. One woman who said, not in my neighborhood, not in my hometown. And this one Mom managed to stop one of the largest, wealthiest companies in America. She didn't back down.They never built in her area.
So now I make a promise to all of you. It will be a long, uphill battle to change to direction of our Education system. But I will not back down. I will keep calling, writing, visiting, until the people in power realize this Mom means business. I will not stop this fight until our children can get a well rounded, quality education, and be recognized as individuals with varying abilities, strengths and weaknesses. We can't pretend children are widgets we are building on a factory line. We owe it to them, and to our own future to see that these flawed education policies change. Not in another decade or two- NOW.
After my initial introduction and a brief explanation of my concerns (essentially the same as in my previous meetings with Assemblyman Englebright and Congressman Bishop), Senator LaValle asked me if I had ever heard of the Truth in Testing Law. Senator LaValle wrote the legislation back in 1979, and it took effect in New York State in 1980. He gave me a brief explanation of the law, and the reason it was written. The Senator said that there are always concerns about biases in exams such as the SAT's and ACT's as well as MCAT's and LSAT's. This law requires the test writing company to share with the test taker the questions they answered incorrectly, along with the correct answer. This allows for students to learn from their mistakes and for others to see if there were cultural, gender, or economic biases at all. That was my first clue that we were not on the same page. While I appreciate the Truth in Testing Law, and I am sure it has been helpful to students for many years, my concerns lie in the standardized tests our younger children are taking annually which are causing undue stress. I have many, many concerns about Education today, but in order to be effective at sparking change, I must pick my battles. The SAT's and test like them are not my current battle.
The Senator did agree with me on many fronts: all children do not learn the same, nor do they test the same. Not every child will be as successful as the next. The pressure on our Administrators, teachers and most importantly students is absurd. He does believe the pendulum will begin to swing back away from testing. I told him I've been waiting for years to see that start to happen, and I can't sit and wait anymore.
The Senator told me that he believes the Federal Government has no business in education, as it is written in every state's constitution that the State is charged with providing Education. He also said that the funding New York State gets from the Federal government is approximately 6% of the Education budget in the State. And I can tell you that the funding the Comsewogue School District gets from New York State is barely 28% of our budget... so we are faced with an overwhelming amount of underfunding all around.
Senator LaValle said the reason for the testing frenzy is simple. It boils down to this: We spend a fortune on education, what do we get for that money? So in an effort to figure that out, we begin testing, and more testing, which by the way costs a lot of money also! He also told me that the Board of Regents is responsible for the current Education policy in New York State, which I am well aware of. I told the Senator that I had sent letters to the Long Island Regent, Roger Tilles on the issues of testing and unfunded mandates, and got no response. Senator LaValle said he will make a point to have Regent Tilles get in touch with me. I will be following up on that promise weekly.
I told Senator LaValle that I have never been a fighter. I just didn't have it in me. But this is a fight I can't back down from. I am in this for my own children, and everyone else's. I told him I wasn't going away, and as long as it takes, I'll be calling him and all of my other representatives. Then he told me a brief story he used to share when he taught law as a college professor: Once there was a Mom, who stopped Wal-Mart. One woman who said, not in my neighborhood, not in my hometown. And this one Mom managed to stop one of the largest, wealthiest companies in America. She didn't back down.They never built in her area.
So now I make a promise to all of you. It will be a long, uphill battle to change to direction of our Education system. But I will not back down. I will keep calling, writing, visiting, until the people in power realize this Mom means business. I will not stop this fight until our children can get a well rounded, quality education, and be recognized as individuals with varying abilities, strengths and weaknesses. We can't pretend children are widgets we are building on a factory line. We owe it to them, and to our own future to see that these flawed education policies change. Not in another decade or two- NOW.
The Federal Perspective
On April 29, I had the pleasure of meeting with Congressman Tim Bishop in his Patchogue office. Congressman Bishop is not only the Representative of our 1st Congressional District, but he is a member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. The meeting was enlightening for me, and allowed me to have some hope that our Federal Government at least recognizes the problems surrounding our current Education Policies, particularly the result of No Child Left Behind. Congressman Bishop is a wealth of knowledge in many areas, and was able to address my concerns.
Initially I spoke about what I have witnessed in my own children since the initial years of the standardized testing policies. While my oldest daughter only took the ELA exam in 4th and 8th grade, we have seen exams piled on year after year, which has added significant stress and pressure on my younger children. I shared with him the brochure I used at the screening for Race to Nowhere which was full of information for everyone who attended.
Congressman Bishop began by explaining that there is certainly change on the horizon, although we don't know for sure when it will arrive. He told me that the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) had actually expired on September 30, 2007. ESEA is the education legislation that was created in 1965. In 2002, it was updated, and coined No Child Left Behind (NCLB). We all know where that led us. So, our representatives are no longer calling it NCLB, but they reauthorized it "until a new law is written." The problem with that is that instead of working on improving the policy, we are stuck with a bad law.
According to Congressman Bishop, while for very different reasons, both the Republican and Democratic committee members are interested in backing away from the current model of NCLB. They are looking to move away from Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), and toward a model of graduating students from High School "College and Career Ready". While the Republican members see it as an issue of too much Government involvement, the Democrats see flawed Education Policy. Either perspective leads to a better place: less standardized testing, less punitive measures for schools having difficulty reaching AYP. There is much to be worked out, and no set date for a start. What will eventually happen is that the Federal Government will give more local control over education and testing policy. Local control in our case would be New York State. I have many concerns about that, as New York State, and our Board of Regents in particular, have continued to add more mandated testing on top of the Federal requirements for years.
When I asked Congressman Bishop what I can do to help move the measure along and get the public involved, he said that we should start to get figures from the Education Committees in June or July for the next budget cycle. It will be important to note where funding has been decreased or increased to see where the priorities of Chaiman Kline and the Majority lie. That will give us a greater sense of their direction and goals moving forward, and give us an opportunity to speak up as caring parents and education advocates to move them in the right direction.
The following link has interesting information about the Obama Administration's goals and priorities regarding Education Policy: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/03/14/president-obama-calls-congress-fix-no-child-left-behind-start-next-schoo
Initially I spoke about what I have witnessed in my own children since the initial years of the standardized testing policies. While my oldest daughter only took the ELA exam in 4th and 8th grade, we have seen exams piled on year after year, which has added significant stress and pressure on my younger children. I shared with him the brochure I used at the screening for Race to Nowhere which was full of information for everyone who attended.
Congressman Bishop began by explaining that there is certainly change on the horizon, although we don't know for sure when it will arrive. He told me that the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) had actually expired on September 30, 2007. ESEA is the education legislation that was created in 1965. In 2002, it was updated, and coined No Child Left Behind (NCLB). We all know where that led us. So, our representatives are no longer calling it NCLB, but they reauthorized it "until a new law is written." The problem with that is that instead of working on improving the policy, we are stuck with a bad law.
According to Congressman Bishop, while for very different reasons, both the Republican and Democratic committee members are interested in backing away from the current model of NCLB. They are looking to move away from Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), and toward a model of graduating students from High School "College and Career Ready". While the Republican members see it as an issue of too much Government involvement, the Democrats see flawed Education Policy. Either perspective leads to a better place: less standardized testing, less punitive measures for schools having difficulty reaching AYP. There is much to be worked out, and no set date for a start. What will eventually happen is that the Federal Government will give more local control over education and testing policy. Local control in our case would be New York State. I have many concerns about that, as New York State, and our Board of Regents in particular, have continued to add more mandated testing on top of the Federal requirements for years.
When I asked Congressman Bishop what I can do to help move the measure along and get the public involved, he said that we should start to get figures from the Education Committees in June or July for the next budget cycle. It will be important to note where funding has been decreased or increased to see where the priorities of Chaiman Kline and the Majority lie. That will give us a greater sense of their direction and goals moving forward, and give us an opportunity to speak up as caring parents and education advocates to move them in the right direction.
The following link has interesting information about the Obama Administration's goals and priorities regarding Education Policy: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/03/14/president-obama-calls-congress-fix-no-child-left-behind-start-next-schoo
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Links of interest
Here are a couple of links you may be interested in:
Report of the Meet the Candidates Night:
http://portjefferson.patch.com/articles/meet-the-candidates-for-comsewogue-board-of-ed
A Letter to the Editor published in the Port Times Record Newspaper on Thursday April 28. Scroll down to page A18:
http://www.northshoreoflongisland.com/pdf/pt_042811w.pdf
More to follow soon!
Report of the Meet the Candidates Night:
http://portjefferson.patch.com/articles/meet-the-candidates-for-comsewogue-board-of-ed
A Letter to the Editor published in the Port Times Record Newspaper on Thursday April 28. Scroll down to page A18:
http://www.northshoreoflongisland.com/pdf/pt_042811w.pdf
More to follow soon!
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