Teachers at International HS boycott mandatory exam
Refused to administer test to students
A group of teachers at the International High School at Prospect Heights refused to administer a city-mandated writing test they say is unsuitable for their students, many of whom are recent immigrants learning English.
The test, called the Measures of English Language Arts Performance Assessment, is essay-based and aligned to Common Core standards. Students took a similar test in the fall and were scheduled to take a spring version on Thursday. The results, used by the city to measure student progress, are to be used as one part of teachers’ new mandatory evaluation plan.
Thirty teachers and staff at the school have signed their names to a letter that lists objections to the test and asks schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña to allow teacher-created assessments as a replacement.
Teachers claimed the students, many of whom are new to the country and hail from countries with poor education systems, struggled with the fall test format and difficulty level of the readings.