Dear Editor:
The State Board of Education (SBE) and your legislators are about “marry” the state’s children to an abusive partner, the WASL—a high stakes but unreliable, invalid test that will unfairly determine which kids move up and which will be pushed aside.
All who testified at the SBE’s May 12 meeting objected to the impending nuptials including parents; minority educators and parents including Hispanic, Asian, and Native American representatives; the teachers union; special educators; parents of special education students; and this nonunion professional educators association focused on students and professionalism.
Instead of calling off the wedding before anyone gets hurt, officials plan to tell your children to go back to their abusive partner, not once, not twice but four times! Not only that, WASL’s are being piloted in additional grades promising further reductions in students’ instructional time.
A messy divorce is inevitable but only after the state wastes millions of dollars and lives too precious to count.
Parents and taxpayers must demand that officials can the WASL for cost effective, reliable performance measures that help children, not hurt them. (Legislators: 800-562-6000; SBE: 360-725-6025 or sbe@ospi.wednet.edu)
Prevent this ceremony or soon you’ll be searching for your nearest shelter for the educationally abused.
Cindy Omlin
Executive Director
May 17, 2004
http://www.spokesmanreview.com/news/letters.asp?date=052304&id=l20003
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