Do these people even listen to themselves? They are constantly railing against straw man positions other people don’t actually hold (see any discussion of the second amendment and you will learn that all people who want to see any sort of moderating influence on elementary school children wielding rocket propelled grenade launchers if they so desire, are in fact making a power play to grab up the weapons of Joey Deerhunter <insert eye roll here>).

Apparently Cindy Rose is running for BOE, highlighted in a post by Mr. “Some People Call Me Thor” (whut????).  And this nugget of what he says is true: you can talk to anyone across the political spectrum and they don’t think Ben should take standardized tests. We don’t. Largely people (including us) don’t actually think most typical kids should spend all their time on them, either. If you have never seen it, we urge you to watch John Oliver’s segment about the big business of standardized testing in America. Pretty sure all this testing and curriculum sales to ensure success on the tests they sold you is not designed to benefit teachers or kids. Sounds like crafty shenanigans.

Our bone to pick here would be that in order to be an effective advocate for special needs kids experiencing this–the kind of lady who gets stuff done instead of continuing to have a festering problem, and gets to sit on the couch at the Today’s Show and explain to Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie what is happening and why it has to stop (and gawk in person at those superfluous drunken dingbats on the last hour) you have to shine a light on this in a different way. The Frederick County BOE supported Dr. Alban’s decision, asking for clarification at the state level. It is possible to make contact with the state board of education and your representatives at every level of government. It is easier than ever to exert pressure through positive use of social media and the sharing of information.  Maybe we could all lend her a hand with regard to that, because we do actually care, and we can switch tone as needed to be polite and logical and respectful. Then she won’t have to run, and can spend all her free time saying crude things on Facebook.

(Make sure you click through the comments)

Her focus–while important, surely critically so to her child and family–does not give her the kind of experience with broad application to all students. Unfortunately her demeanor when dealing with others does not lend itself to being a constructive voice for the community. We know, we know. We’re snarky too. That’s why we write snarky blog posts, and won’t be running for public office. None of us are patient enough to be cooperative with people we think are infuriating. It’s why #kirbydelauter and Billy Shreve are crappy legislators. Running a county and ranting are not the same thing.

This certainly does not amount to a reason for Whatshisname (Tron, was it?) to vilify FCTA. Who ever hears teachers exalting the vitures of standardized testing? Lois Jarman has a fantastic and 100% snark free blog post just today about the weakness of using standardized testing to evaluate students. Everyone’s students.

Our public school teachers are highly educated and well-trained. We should value their understanding of student learning and performance in the classroom. It’s evident that their assessments bear more weight than anything standardized.