Abstract
Tis chapter will detail the activity of Mecklenburg Area Coming Together for Schools (MecklenburgACTS), a grassroots group that had been working for several years on local education issues and who saw the chance to direct community discontent over the proliferation of standardized testing into positive change. We started an online petition calling for sanity in testing, which garnered more than two thousand signatures. We used the list, as well as our Facebook page, to keep supporters informed of major developments on local and national testing fronts, and to urge them to contact school board members, state legislators, and Congressional representatives when important decisions were coming up.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Board on Testing and Assessment, National Research Council (2009). Letter to the US department of education on the race to the top fund. The National Academies Press. Retrieved from http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12780.
Department of Education (2009). Overview information: Race to the top fund: Notice inviting applications for new award for fiscal year (FY) 2010. Federal Register, 74(221), 1–37.
Eiselt, J. (2011, May 30). Student: Why do I have to take a standardized test in yearbook? The Answer Sheet. Retrieved from washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/student-why-do-i-have-to-take-a-standardized-test-in-yearbook/2011/05/30/AGJjp2EH_blog.html#pagebreak.
Frazier, E. (2011, May 25). School board holds frm on performance pay. Charlotte Observer, p. 4B.
—. (2011, June 9). CMS teacher layoffs averted. Charlotte Observer, p. 1A.
Gorman, P. (2011, April 3). Measuring CMS teachers’ effectiveness. Charlotte Observer, p. 21A.
—. (2012, March 3). A rare break from testing madness. The Answer Sheet. Retrieved from washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/a-rare-break-from-testing-madness/2012/03/03/gIQAtSfApR_blog.html.
Grundy, P. & Sawyer, C. (2011, March 19). Stand up for teachers now. Charlotte Observer, p. 13A.
—. (2011, May 15). The push behind a new furry of testing. Raleigh News & Observer.
Helms, A. D. (2011, March 6). Pay plan has CMS teachers on edge. Charlotte Observer, p. 1A.
—. (2011, March 11). New ratings for CMS teachers spark questions. Charlotte Observer, p. 1A.
—. (2011, April 6). Gorman: Plan wouldn’t cut teacher pay. Charlotte Observer, p. 2B.
—. (2011, April 29). N.C. House passes bill on CMS pay plan. Charlotte Observer, p. 1B.
—. (2011, September 21). CMS named country’s top urban district. Charlotte Observer, p. 1A.
—. (2011, March). CMS seeks to bypass vote on teacher pay. Your Schools. Retrieved from obsyourschools.blogspot.com/2011/03/gorman-goes-viral-to-teachers.html#storylink=cpy.
—. (2012, February 15). CMS scraps year-end tests. Charlotte Observer, p. 1A.
—. (2013, September 11). Protest targets testing. Charlotte Observer, p. 3B.
Helms, A. D., Goldsmith, T., & and Hui, T. K. (2011, May 8). Who’s the power behind CMS? Charlotte Observer, p. 1B.
Peters, S. (2011, April 19). How to tell if your school district is infected with the Broad Virus. Seattle Education. Retrieved from eattleducation2010.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/how-to-tell-if-your-school-district-is-infected-by-the-broad-virus/.
St. Onge, P. (2011, April 10). CMS assessments are a test of our patience. Charlotte Observer, p. 1B.
Strauss, V. (2011, April 20). School district field tests 52 (yes, 52) new tests on kids. The Answer Sheet. Retrieved from washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/school-district-feld-tests-52-yes-52-new-tests-on-kids/2011/04/20/AFFbGXFE_blog.html.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2014 Alison Heron-Hruby and Melanie Landon-Hays
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Grundy, P. (2014). Fighting Testing Madness in Charlotte, North Carolina. In: Heron-Hruby, A., Landon-Hays, M. (eds) Digital Networking for School Reform: The Online Grassroots Efforts of Parent and Teacher Activists. Digital Education and Learning. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137430748_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137430748_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-49215-2
Online ISBN: 978-1-137-43074-8
eBook Packages: Palgrave Education CollectionEducation (R0)