DENVER – Colorado moms roared at the state Capitol on Thursday ahead of a hearing on a slew of bills aimed at reducing student testing.
“We will not be compliant,” said Bethany Drosendahl, a Colorado Springs mom who offered the dissenting vote on a task force that made recommendations on student testing. She joined a parade of parents speaking at the marathon hearing.
“We will not live with the cumbersome, opaque, one-size-fits-all, data-mining, unvalidated, curriculum-driving product,” Drosendahl said.
After nearly nine hours, the Senate Education Committee advanced three bills that aim to reduce testing in the state, including a measure by Sen. Vicki Marble, R-Fort Collins, that would eliminate a large swath of assessments, such as the controversial Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. That passed on a Republican party-line 5-4 vote.
A centerpiece bill that passed 8-1, Senate Bill 257, also would eliminate certain tests, while allowing districts to use local assessments, an issue that could complicate discussions over the bill.
The committee killed one other measure at the sponsor’s request, and delayed a vote on another measure because of the late hour.
Another centerpiece bill moving through the Legislature, House Bill 1323, has been delayed over a lack of consensus on whether ninth grade tests should be mandatory. The measure would eliminate tests in 11th and 12th grades.
The task force that made recommendations earlier this year, chaired by Durango schools Superintendent Dan Snowberger, stopped short of backing eliminating PARCC. Instead, the task force recommended eliminating tests in 11th and 12th grades, other than the ACT. It split on whether to require English language arts (ELA) and math assessments in ninth grade.
The Legislature has made little progress implementing the recommendations. Lawmakers have less than a month to find a compromise.
The only significant bill to clear a major hurdle this year would allow parents to opt their children out of assessments without facing penalties. Senate Bill 223 passed the Senate and now faces a tough climb in the House.
Sen. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango, was the only Republican to vote against the opt-out bill, which passed on a bipartisan 28-7 vote. She suggested that the assessments are key to evaluations. Legislation in 2010 tied 50 percent of a teacher’s evaluation to student growth.
“I am not interested in throwing the baby out with the bath water,” Roberts said. “The idea that this isn’t going to impact assessments in Colorado just doesn’t make sense. It makes Swiss cheese out of our assessment approach.”
But several of her colleagues and a growing group of parents disagree, as was highlighted during testimony Thursday. They spoke about reducing teacher-evaluation requirements and cutting tests to federal minimums.
“These are the number one stakeholders,” Marble said. “The highly involved, dedicated parents, teachers and students.”
pmarcus@durangoherald.com
