Governor Chris Christie told reporters April 20 that as long as he’s governor, there will be state testing for students, be it PARCC or some other assessment.
The Governor did indicate that because PARCC was only rolled out last year, there is not enough information to determine if it is the best assessment. That said, he did indicate, “I’m comfortable with having a test determine whether kids really know what they need to know to get the diploma we give them.”
He also expressed amusement during his monthly radio show, “Ask the Governor,” over parents’ reaction to the new assessment.
“Parents crack me up,” he said. “They don’t want their kids tested if the scores are bad. If the scores are good, they’re happy to have them tested. I mean, this is silliness.”
It’s important to have an assessment that determines if a student is mastering the content they should know to receive a diploma rather than be handed a “meaningless piece of paper,” he said.
Christie also called it “BS” that parents are already expressing anxiety over the possibility of PARCC as a graduation requirement. The state Board of Education is considering making it a requirement starting with the class of 2021. “It’s 2016,” Christie said.
Source: PolilticoPro