Blog Archives

Hallelujah!!! The entire state of Tennessee Opts Out!

4/28/2016

Today was like the Oprah Show
"You get an opt-out, and you get an opt-out, and you get an opt-out…"

We just want to say a big "THANK YOU" to TDOE, for teaching our students about IRONY today. Irony is a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.

In case you've been under a rock today and haven't heard the great news, at 2:30 pm central time on April 27, 2016, the Tennessee Department of Education FINALLY saw the TN ready for what it was (or wasn’t) and suspended testing for grades 3-8. And they fired Measurement Inc. Done, Over, Finito.

Almost makes you want to giggle (or cry) over the expensive commercial that hit the airwaves just last week. Our kids are ready. Our teachers are ready. Our administrators would have been ready too, if Measurement Inc. had ever gotten the test booklets printed and mailed out to schools.

So, now.....The whole state is opting out!

Oh, the irony of parents being told we couldn’t do that, it’s not allowed.

But…. We Still Have Some Questions!!

What about our high schoolers and advanced 8th graders taking EOCs?

Why are they still being assessed using tests from a company fired by the state?

We want the Tennessee Department of Education to let them off the hook too!!

Our high school students and 8th graders taking EOCs deserve to salvage a tiny bit of this year to make memories and spend the final months of this over-tested school year having fun and being TAUGHT by some amazing Tennessee teachers. Like this anonymous high school teacher in middle TN who says:

"I have proctored 2 TNReady tests in the past 4 days for high school. What I see is apathy. Students do not care. It is just another fill-in-the-bubble test. They just had a similar test one month ago. We teachers are sick of being cheerleaders for tests that serve no purpose. I can't even look at the tests or discuss them with students anyway. Students and teachers are burnt out on these tests. They serve no purpose. I don't need them in order to teach. I can give my own tests!"

This teacher nailed it. Our kids are burned out by testing long before the end of course. We want to know why are high school EOCs given in April when there is at least a month left in the school year?

Things that make you go HMMMMMM??????

Shouldn’t EOC tests, by definition, be given at the END OF THE COURSE??? When there are 180 days of school (90 days per semester on the block schedule), why would we expect our students to take an EOC test on day 160 (70 on block schedule)?

Figuring 5 days in a week x 4 weeks is 20 school days using common sense math not common core math, we come up with 180-20=160 and 90-20=70. Sooooo… Shouldn’t EOCs be scheduled on day 178 or 179 (day 88 or 89 for block schedule schools)? Wouldn’t we want our teachers to get in as much instruction time as possible before the EOC test? Is it fair to test our students without giving them the benefit of a full school year of learning?

Since TDOE doesn't have any answers for us then we think every district should follow the lead of Williamson County. Their Superintendent not only cancelled the TNReady tests for grades 3-8, but cancelled high school EOCs as well!!!

BTWs… Who is going to grade these Measurement, Inc. tests?

Seriously… What other test company is going to have the MI Answer Key?

Momma Bears is betting that not one other testing company is willing to touch MI's mess with a ten foot pole!

Honestly folks, now that Measurement, Inc. is fired, who would want to grade ANY of the MI produced EOCs, TNReady, Science TCAP standardized tests? Face it, the tests developed and managed by Measurement, Inc have no grading destination.

And who is going to hire test graders? Who will have to pay them? How would it even be valid grading in such a short time frame? Our state Department of Education needs to stop pretending this can be solved in a few months. A good, valid test based on TN Standards should take years to develop. Have we not rushed and bungled enough? The rush to get this done by a competitor... how does that fly? Take a competing vendor and give them the other vendors test questions out to be graded? Really? Will that fly like pigs on an intellectual property lawsuit?

So what are they going to do? Follow in MI's footsteps and hire graders off Craig’s List?

At this point the whole testing debacle is so flawed that any data they might possibly be able to squeeze out of any of these TN(not)ready tests would be worthless. The state DOE has indicated that this would be a baseline year to judge future years from. ((insert evil laugh))

Since we are no longer using Measurement Inc. or TN(not)ready how would these tests be used? The scores from these tests were never going to be back in time to count in grades for our high school students. We have yet to see the test scores from the fall for those schools on block schedules and teachers have been given the option to not have these scores count against them.

So, what is the point in continuing to put these tests in front of our students?

Let's not forget the youngest test-takers in Tennessee...

And while we're on our testing soapbox, let's address the poor children in Kindergarten-2nd grades who are forced to take the SAT-10 test in some districts.

One elementary teacher writes, "I'm thrilled for the students who TN Ready was cancelled for. However, please pray for the K-2 students who are in the midst of SAT 10 hell. Our test was moved up from next week to this week due to the testing fiasco. We had a field trip scheduled for Monday we had to cancel. My poor 2nd graders took the math portion today. We started at 8:00 and were finished at 11:20 with one 10min. break. Our lunch time is at 11:30! One of the other 2nd grade classes was 30 min. late getting to lunch because they were still testing."

Sadly, some districts pick data over children's welfare. They force children 5-8 years old to take the SAT-10 test over a 3 day period taking many hours to complete. It is torturous for such young children. And it is developmentally inappropriate. But it gives data that can be used to evaluate teachers, so districts justify its use.

But parents and teachers in Knox County knew better and spoke against SAT 10 at their school board meetings. They successfully pressured their elected school board members to dump the SAT-10. Victory! It worked! See, parents and teachers? Your voices work, but you have to speak up and use them!!!

Just imagine, Momma Bears

Close your eyes and imagine... oh wait, that won’t work, so open your eyes and read this....
If the state DOE would have cancelled the WHOLE TN(not)ready test on that crazy morning in February when all the computers crashed.

What a different year our kids and teachers and administrators would have had:

NO stress over standardized tests
NO stress over moving test dates and then moving them again
NO stress over hours and hours of test prep
NO testing anxiety
NO losing fun activities because the test has been changed yet again
NO stress over changing from computers to pencils and paper
NO stress over unanswerable questions
NO stress over questions that were not aligned with standards
NO stress over scheduling Teachers who could actually teach their subject – oh how amazing that would be
Students who could have been challenged beyond learning a testing medium that they would never see again.
Students that could be engaged in the joy of learning instead of the agony of test prep
We could revel in what amazing things our teachers would have taught our students over the last several months instead of looking back in frustration at the hours and days and months spent learning to test.
We could see amazement at the learning process instead of pushing rigor over the testing process

For those of you that would like to make a bonfire of those fabulous (now not-worth-the-paper-they-are-printed-on tests) if your school ever actually received delivery of them…. Well, you can’t.

Those questions are secure, even though we fired the company that wrote them. No wait!!! We bought them from Utah. Even though we fired the company that bought them from Utah, we don’t own them to burn.

According to FAQ, Suspending TNReady Part II Testing for Grades 3-8 April 27, 2016:

If districts cannot or do not administer grades 3-8 tests, those materials are still considered secure testing documents and should be similarly kept in a secure location until we provide labels to ship materials. No materials should be disposed.

So what now?

As Momma Bears, we are grieving over the lost time teaching and learning. While our kids are happy this is not happening, they feel cheated out of a school year that was totally devoted to a test that never happened. Next year doesn't look any better. There is no way on this green earth that the TDOE will have a test ready for next school year. This is what happens when you build a plane in mid-air. It crashes and burns with our kids inside.

#MommaBEARs #IamaMommaBEARhearmeroar #TNaintReady #TNReadyLOL

Dear Momma Bears: What in the world is going on?

4/26/2016

A Tennessee teacher wrote us the following question and we felt compelled to answer it with our Momma Bear snark. No disrespect is intended to teachers or to parents.

Dear Momma Bears,

I am a dedicated teacher who has always "played by the rules" and my students have done very well on standardized tests in the past. I don't know what was on the TN Ready/Part I test because I didn't look. However, I did see my students' reactions which began with frozen, stunned silence and morphed into apparent confusion about what was being asked and how/where to write their answers. A few minutes later, I had students crying, pulling their hair, and just generally appearing defeated. None of them finished the test. It was heartbreaking to watch as I could do nothing but stand idly by while the minutes ticked off. That was the worst day of my 10 year teaching career. What in the world is going on?

Dear Dedicated Teacher,

According to the TDOE and politicians, nothing at all is going on. You are over-reacting. You also may be a bit unstable and you need to stop reading the tabloid newspapers. Do you believe everything you see with your own two eyes?

The TNReady is just an itty-bitty test to gauge college and career readiness for students (nevermind the test hasn't been validated nor has it been proven to assess college or career readiness). This new test is rigorous, and if you have a problem with rigor, then you are part of the problem. In essence, you are a wimp. You have been too easy on these kids. It is time to toughen up and kick these lazy kids with some rigorous boots to make them stop playing and grow the heck up. Because China is beating us on international tests, and everyone knows China is such a great place to live and raise a family. So, trust us and the testing companies, we know what we are doing here (cough*making a boatload of money*).

Also, don't even think about questioning the fact TN Commissioner of Education Candice McQueen's children are not taking these tests or doing Common Core in their private school in Nashville. That is none of your business.

If your students are "crying, pulling their hair, and just generally feeling defeated" or even vomiting or banging their heads on their desks during the test like other bleeding-heart teachers are claiming... well, that is your fault as their teacher. Obviously, you must have conveyed to the students that this test is incredibly important. You must have acted like their test scores determine your job (which is true, but you shouldn't have acted like it). If you haven't acted that way, (suuure, we believe you) then it must be their parents fault for being helicopter parents and not letting their kids fail.

But let's stop pointing fingers. Wait, I'm not done pointing at you...
As teacher, it is your fault for not teaching them what was on the test they failed. Nevermind the fact that you're not allowed to ever see the test. You should just know. You also should have given them more practice tests so they wouldn't be so stressed. You could have used some of your huge paycheck to buy more test prep materials. The fact that you didn't prepare your students is just plain selfish. You must have been in the teacher's lounge eating vending machine candy bars and playing Candy Crush on your phone instead of teaching. Your students were left to fend for themselves. Shame on you.

And to the teachers who are conveying your "opinions" about these tests to the parents of your students, you are being unprofessional. That is not your job. Your job is to get your students to pass the test. When you share your "opinions" with parents about the tests or Common Core, you are being "political." Even though you may have degrees in education, and even though you may work with their children all year, stop it. You don't know better than the TDOE and testing companies. Don't make us talk to your principal. We have ways of making you keep your mouth shut, ways you'll never be able to prove. So just give up and follow orders like a good little teacher.

Ugh... Even worse than teachers with excuses are the kids who talk and the parents who listen!
If only those pesky parents would just stop asking their kids about what they did at school that day!!! If only children wouldn't open their big mouths about the tests! Those measly kids really don't need to tell anyone about the test questions they had no idea how to answer, or the odd survey questions at the beginning/end of the tests, or how their lunch was delayed 2 hours because their school was testing again, or how their band concert festival was rescheduled/cancelled due to the testing, or how they were ashamed to be on red level on the bulletin board because their RTI2 testing scores weren't high enough to make it to yellow or green like others in the class, or whining how they don't like school anymore... cry-babies, all of them!

All those pathetic complaints just pull at the heart-strings of weak parents. It makes parents start researching things, gosh darnit! Parents want to actually see the tests (which, of course, we cannot allow because they might be smart enough to see the typos/bias/errors/nonalignment). And, heaven forbid parents find out how these tests are scored on curves so it is impossible for every student to be labeled as "passing." Oh, noooo, we can't have that! That information would be disastrous if they knew!!!

All this complaining and researching must stop because it is getting in the way of collecting data and making money for the testing companies, which seriously hinders the money flow of donations to politicians' campaigns. And what will happen if elected officials actually listen to parents and teachers?!?

Just look at what happened when this informed parent in New Jersey opened her big mouth:

She cost that company a huge contract!!! That mom is the enemy. How are those executives supposed to put food on their table when selfish parents and teachers are out there sabotaging them like that?

So you see, dear dedicated teacher, we cannot have this tyranny.

Parents and teachers, just close your pie-hole

If those pesky parents would just mind their own business, these tests could be used to do all sorts of wonderful things like:

close down public schools and open unaccountable private charter schools run by the friends of politicians who can make a boat-load of money with the tax credit and rent payments to themselves!
fund campaigns to elect politicians who will pass laws to require even more testing and charter schools!
sell even more of their test prep materials to improve test scores!
collect data on children that help corporations know who to hire or not hire! (Yes, they can do that, thanks to FERPA law being changed)
collect data on children to help colleges know who to admit or not admit! (Yes, they can do that, thanks to the FERPA law being changed)
produce children who will be good little-worker bees for the businesses in our state!

Heck, if pesky parents and teachers weren't in the picture, children could be hooked up kids to IVs to infuse them with amino-acid fluids to keep them awake to do more test prep like they do in China! But then we might also have to put bars on the classroom windows to prevent student suicides. Liability, you know. As you can see, there is nothing too drastic when it comes to getting high scores on the almighty tests.

Parents and teachers know nothing about testing, nor should they. Besides, we've formed task forces to make it appear we are including teachers and parents on these decisions. And we're even asking parents their opinion on what color and flavor they'd like their child's test results to look like. See? The TDOE really is reaching out and collaborating with handpicked shareholders on this! Teamwork makes the dreamwork, people.

Those awful parents who opt out of testing for their kids are the worst! Who do they think they are? It is like they think they know what is best for the kids! As if! Just because they gave birth to the little rugrats doesn't give them the authority to stop them from taking our tests. They are clearly letting their emotions go to their heads. But it is nothing, a little bullying from the state and district will put those parents in their place. They'll give up eventually. Right???

Heck, the TDOE is reducing testing next year because of your complaints, oops, we mean concerns. [Nevermind the fact that the it had already been decided months ago to decrease the testing time. It's true... the TDOE told Superintendents months ago that the testing would be reduced for next year. The TDOE merely recycled the old news to make themselves look better, hoping that the public will feel like they "won" and thus prevent opt-outs for Part 2 of TNReady. Fooled ya, ha!]

So see? You win, parents and teachers. The TDOE is cutting about 50 minutes from the testing for next year (nevermind that the tests will still be over 10 hours long for elementary children, and will be even more high stakes now that there is a new law that will give A-F grades to schools based on the test scores). Now everyone can stop complaining and go back to watching soap operas and playing Candy Crush.

Please, please, please STOP talking to your elected officials! It is making the jobs of the TDOE and testing companies rigorous.

Sincerely,
The Momma Bears (using a fake persona of the politicians and appointed officials in our state)

#TNaintReady Part 2—Deja' Vu, it's Another Snafu

4/22/2016

Earlier this week, a public service announcement went out assuring parents that their kids were ready for TNReady. The PSA featured Tennessee's teacher of the year, Cathy Whitehead, who narrated the youtube video saying that teachers came in early and stayed late because they cared about our kids. But she should have said that teachers come in early and stay late because they have to sort through a mess of TNReady testing materials.

Hot on the heels of the epic failure of TNReady part 1, Momma Bears is getting word from all over the state that TNReady Part 2 is another fiasco. Testing material is dribbling in sporadically often with errors and missing pieces.

We've heard a district in east Tennessee has answer sheets but no test booklets. But what the heck, just Christmas tree those suckers anyway. And high school EOC for algebra contains geometry problems and the geometry EOC has algebra problems. We're not sure if that was a printer's error or an intentional mix-up. Either way, it's always a good idea to mess with teenage minds, they need more angst in their lives.

So far, our readers have told us about scores of school districts (pun intended) that have delayed testing for lack of materials and those scheduled to start testing soon also don't have all their materials. Tuesday, the TDOE sent out a memo advising test coordinators that they have no idea when Measurement Inc. will ship out their testing packages.

Mirror, Mirror, on the wall…Who's the Unfairest of Them All?

"The TDOE believes that it is critical districts know when to expect their materials. We have repeatedly asked MI for information to identify expected delivery dates for each district. Despite our repeated requests, MI has indicated that they will not be able to provide this information."

That's right. The testing schedule for TNReady part 2 is all janked up. School districts set to begin testing this week are forced to reschedule and no one at TDOE can tell them when to expect delivery of their materials. All TDOE knows is that it will be sometime between now and April 27th.

But parents already knew TNReady was set for disaster and even petitioned Tennessee Education Commissioner Candice McQueen to call it off. We begged her to spare public school kids from TNReady testing just like her children who attend private school are spared from such testing.

Sadly, our pleas fell on deaf ears. Despite concerns that TNReady is unfair and unreliable, McQueen has persisted with part two. She has allowed our entire state public education system to be held hostage by incompetence. Although, McQueen squarely blames Measurement, Inc. for all the testing problems, others point the finger at TDOE. One MNPS school board member faults TDOE Assistant Commisioner Nakia Towns flatly stating she "has no background in education or student assessment."

Still, McQueen rules TDOE so parents want her to answer for the TNReady incompetence. This is affecting our children's daily lives. Doesn't McQueen understand this is the mad rush of the final weeks of school? Doesn't she know how everything is being affected by her uncertain testing schedule? When are kids suppose to review for finals, go on field trips, take AP exams, plan special end-of-year programs, travel to band & choir competitions, enjoy field day, work on research papers?

Maybe, being a private school parent makes McQueen oblivious as to how things work in public schools.

Let's set the record straight. In public schools, EVERYTHING centers around the testing schedule. All after school events are called off during testing week. Lunch is served around testing periods. The whole school environment changes. Parents become proctors. Hallways are blocked off. Music, art and PE classes are cancelled for the week. The library is closed. So when the testing schedule changes, it really messes up everything.

School systems across Tennessee are getting tired of the constant changes and the uncertainty of everything. It's affecting morale. Parents, students, teachers, administrators, school boards, district offices are all begging McQueen for mercy. We are exhausted by the demands of learning a new system of online computer testing only to revert back to paper testing. We are growing old waiting for those paper tests to be delivered on time. We are getting headaches sorting through materials delivered piece mill. System wide fatigue has set in. Kids are crying. Teachers are complaining.

But there is no mercy from McQueen. Just the same old tired platitudes:

We understand the need to plan for districts, and we are extremely frustrated that we are not able to provide specific delivery timelines due to MI’s failure to provide shipping projections. At this point, what we have is a commitment from MI that all grade 3-8 material will be delivered to districts by April 27. But, we cannot provide any specific information on which districts will receive what materials over the next seven days.

As such, we are advising that all testing may be scheduled through May 10, rather than limiting grade 3-8 testing to an end date of May 6. In addition, districts may modify their testing schedules as needed, without any prior approval or notice to the department. This flexibility includes scheduling grade 3-8 or high school testing over more than five (5) days and skipping a day if need be such that testing days are not necessarily consecutive.

We understand and share your frustration with not having more specific information at this time. We will certainly update you if MI provides a projected shipping timeline for district deliveries through April 27.

We will continue to send daily shipping notices and communicate updated order fulfillment information as MI provides it. If your district has unique scheduling concerns that are not addressed by the additional flexibility noted above, please contact us.

Thank you for all you do on behalf of students, staff, and families in Tennessee.

#TNaintReady and Momma Ain't Playin'

This ain't no fairy tale and your children only have one childhood.
Don't waste it waiting on TNReady. Opt out like we told you to do.
Click here for Opt-Out Information

Where do Momma Bears come from? We'll tell you...

4/8/2016

Throughout time, there has been one awkward question that has the power to make people immediately stop and think, "oh, geez, how do I best answer this?" You know the question... THAT question. You naively think you have plenty of time, years perhaps, before your children ask it. Some of you plan ahead what you will say, some use metaphors like "birds and bees," while others go straight to the science of it using grammatically correct terms. It doesn't matter your strategy of explaining the mystery of life, because we all worry if we said the right thing. We all fear scarring our children for life with the awkwardness, right?

So, here's an awkward question we have been asked many times:

Where do Momma Bears come from?

We can't answer that. Well, we could, but we won't.

Why won't we? Because Momma Bears are private to protect our kids. We're not doing this blog for publicity or fame. We want what is best for all students in TN. The truth is we're just busy, informed Tennessee Moms who each noticed a problem with our children's public schools. Fate would have it that we met each other. Venting with each other was therapeutic, but it wasn't enough. So we started this free blog and website in July 2013 not knowing what on earth we were doing, hoping some other parents would read it and join us in the fight to support public education. And you did! Since then, we've had well over a million readers a year. Together, we Momma Bear bloggers are trying to help make the world a better place through our writing and advocacy. It isn't Rocket Science. Just plain common sense and motherly intuition.

It is especially encouraging and empowering when Momma Bears find their voices. Let us tell you about this Momma Bear in Tullahoma, TN...

This Momma Bear writes, "My own daughter took Part 1 of the TNReady test. It was an experience that caused her anxiety and lowered her confidence. She spent over 4 hours testing when she sat for Part 1, which is more time than the ACT or SAT. The second part of TNReady would require her to test for 7 more hours! So an eight year old Tennessee student is being asked to be focused, engaged, and silently seated for well over 11 hours, which is the equivalent of taking the SAT four times in a matter of a few weeks (especially for districts whose tests were delayed). Sadly, after all that invested time, TNReady will not provide Claire with any worthwhile data (since scores will be reported after she is already in her fourth grade year). Claire, along with the rest of the students of Tennessee, have spent more time on this test than it deserved."

And there you have it... the recipe for a Momma Bear:

She noticed her child was suffering.
She found out why.
She researched more on the subject.
She saw that the problem was preventable and fixable.
She wanted to fix it.
She talked to people in authority to see what she could do.
She knew the power of elected officials (because she served as one herself).
She knew the power of her own parent voice and in speaking up.
She did something about it!
She created an online petition!!!

The petition now has over 1000 signatures in just a few days. She knows she is doing the right thing because she says, "the amazing comments under the petition being made by parents, teachers, and even a student that demonstrates the need for the TN DOE to respond." Indeed, the comments from people who have signed the petition are powerful. Roar, Momma Bear, roar!!!

The petition clearly asks for Governor Haslam, Commissioner Candice McQueen, the 33 State Senators, and the 99 House of Representative Members to Stop Part 2 of TNReady. She knows they have the power to stop it, and she gives valid reasons why TNReady should not proceed this year. She even followed up with a message to her signors about Alaska cancelling their state tests last week. This Momma Bear is doing her homework!

We Momma Bear bloggers are proud to share her petition with our readers. Please, help this fellow Momma Bear out by signing and sharing it. She isn't really on social media. She writes, "I have a limited social media presence. I am just a concerned mother. I am reaching out to any and all that can help spread the word. I understand that this petition is just a “statement move”, but thousands of signatures and comments will make a powerful statement. I have to know that I did everything I could possibly do to help my daughter."

Well done, Momma Bear from Tullahoma, Tennessee! Well, done! We have heard your roar across the state, and undoubtedly the elected officials who are getting your petition will hear it, too, since that online petition service sends an email to the "target" each and every time someone signs it. Thank you for your courage and advocacy!

Hallelujah!!! The entire state of Tennessee Opts Out!

Today was like the Oprah Show"You get an opt-out, and you get an opt-out, and you get an opt-out…"

But…. We Still Have Some Questions!!

Let's not forget the youngest test-takers in Tennessee...

​Just imagine, Momma Bears