| | | Parent calls 911 after public school refuses to release child (wouldn't take Common Core test)
The opt out movement has sprouted up across the country in the last year amid concerns the federally funded standardized tests are collecting personal data on students beyond how well they’re reading and writing.
Fox News reported parents sent a letter to then-Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett with their concerns about the extent of data that could end up in state and federal databases.
“The personally identifiable information includes information on every student’s personality, attitudes, values, beliefs, and disposition, a psychological profile called Interpersonal Skills Standards and anchors,” reads the letter sent to Corbett in December.
“This data has been illegally obtained through deceptive means without the parents’ knowledge or consent through screening, evaluations, testing, and surveys. These illegal methods of information gathering were actually fraudulently called ‘academic standards’ on the [Pennsylvania] Department of Education website portal.”
“This follows them from the cradle to the grave,” Tracy Ramey, of Pennsylvanians against Common Core, told FoxNews.com.
While some states allow opting out of testing, others, like Florida, do not.
To fight back, parents are instructing their children to take the initial step of participating – breaking the seal on a test booklet or logging into the test on a computer – but then refuse to do anything else.
The Ohio legislature passed a bill that bars schools from punishing students who opt out.
Prior to the legislation, state officials and educators said students could face “serious consequences, including third-graders not advancing to fourth grade and high school seniors denied diplomas,” according to WCPO. |
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