Wednesday, May 16, 2012
The testing industry: self-appointed non-elected national school board?
The hiring of David Coleman as its next president is consistent with the College Board's aggressive push into the K-12 assessment arena. Unlike the university admissions testing market where the Board has little or no growth potential due to the end of the baby boom echo and competition from ACT, K-12 has been flush with money and demand for more exams as a result of programs such as "Race to the Top" and NCLB Waivers.
Under Gaston Caperton, who was hired with the goal of "growing the bottom line" for the company, the Board aggressively expanded its Advanced Placement program of high school courses and tests, introduced the controversial middle school ReadiStep pre-pre-SAT, and promoted its SpringBoard curriculum as well as services to align high school subjects with its tests.
Coleman's pledge to align the SAT with the Common Core Standards is the next logical move in the testing industry's drive to dominate public U.S. public education with "one-size-fits-all" products in its self-appointed role as the country's non-elected, national school board.
Bob Schaeffer, Public Education Director
FairTest: National Center for Fair & Open Testing
ph- (239) 395-6773 fax- (239) 395-6779
cell- (239) 699-0468
web- http://www.fairtest.org
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As this Coleman monopoly appears to be growing - shouldn't legal action be considered to stop this runaway train. Coleman, Pearson, et al now control K-12 testing, GEDs, AP testing, SATs and are trying to land the ability to certify teachers and administrators nationwide. There are no checks-and-balances any longer. And once the Walmartification of education is complete, there will be no precious "free market" on the prices this group will charge for all of these services. The competition has been squeezed out. And how will we prove Common Core is hollow if there is no independent testing for graduates that have been exposed to the program?
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