iowa opt out guide final 8.8.2014

State by state template created by UOO, http://unitedoptout.com

Testing Opt-out/Refusal Guide for: IOWA

Form completed by United Opt Out National Administrator (CS)and Opt Out Leader for Iowa (NHJ)

Contact information [email protected] (Admin)[email protected] (Leader)

List of Assessments

The Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) and the Iowa Tests of Educational Development (ITED) have been replaced by a test called Iowa Assessments.

For the 2014-2015 school year, test will be administered to grades 3-8 and 10 and 11.

Iowa Assessments are administered in levels, as follows:

Level(s): For Grade:

5/6 1

7 1/2

8 2

9 3

10 4

11 5

12 6

13 7

14 8

15 9

16 10

17/18 11/12

In Iowa, students will be tested in ELA and Math that align to the Iowa Core (created before the Common Core State Standards, but very similar to them), as well as in Social Studies and Science. More info here: https://itp.education.uiowa.edu/ia/documents/Iowa_Form_E_F_Scope_and_Sequence.pdf

This is not a legal document. It is for informational purposes only.Template revised: 8.8.14


The Iowa Assessments measure student achievement in reading, mathematics, science, written expression, and social studies. Results of the Iowa Assessments support interpretations of growth and relative standing compared to students in the state and the nation. The Iowa Percentile Rank (IPR) indicates the level of a student’s achievement compared with that of students from Iowa. This metric allows Iowa Testing Programs to chart educational progress since the 1950s and provides a basis for examining changes in Iowa student achievement over time. The National Percentile Rank (NPR) indicates the level of a student’s achievement compared with that of students in the nation.

IPRs for the Iowa Assessments are based on 2012 and 2013 state data for grades 3 to 11. Scores for Reading and Mathematics (all grades except 9) and Science (grades 5, 8, and 11) are based on performance of all Iowa students in public and private schools. Scores in other content areas are based on Iowa students whose schools chose to administer tests in the content area. It is often the case that the districts that elect to administer the tests in other content areas tend to perform better. Therefore, IPRs in content areas other than Reading, Mathematics, and Science in the indicated grades should be interpreted cautiously.(For more information: https://itp.education.uiowa.edu/ia/documents/Interpreting_Iowa_Performance_on_the_Iowa_Assessments.pdf)

Iowa End-of-Course (IEOC) assessments measure the extent to which students have met academic standards of high school courses. The IEOC provides diagnostic information to help students identify strengths and weaknesses in specific content areas found in the Iowa Core Curriculum. Results help to monitor student progress throughout the high school career, giving students the opportunity for enrichment or remediation. Results can be used by teachers to help make instruction more effective. Schools and districts can help evaluate the performance of students within specific courses. The IEOCs are being developed to match the courses most frequently offered in math, science, and social studies. Price: $2.75 per student per administration.

The IARA: Using both the Standards from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and the Common Core State Standards as guides, it is intended to help teachers and counselors make more informed decisions regarding the initial placement of students in the secondary mathematics curriculum. While the recommendations of current and former teachers must be given great weight, additional information about mathematics achievement and foundational knowledge is also important. The IARA provides this information in an easy-to-administer format so that determinants of algebra readiness are well informed and timely. Price: $2.75 for each student tested.

Logramos® is an achievement battery for grades K-12 developed by Riverside Publishing Co. to be compatible in content and process with the skills measured by the Iowa Tests. Thus, performance on Logramos is an indication of the level of student achievement that we might expect of the student if he/she took the Iowa Tests as a native-English speaker.



Qualls Early Learning Inventory - This inventory for grades pre-K through 1 uses teacher ratings of many of the student characteristics that are important for success in the primary grades. The purpose of this program is to offer an efficient assessment of primary students' skills and behaviors that can be used to supplement test score information obtained from the Iowa Assessments achievement battery.

Constructed Response Supplement - This set of materials includes assessment tools that are 30-minute assessments in Reading, Math, and Language for grades 3-12, each requiring students to furnish or construct their responses to the questions asked. The purpose of this program is to offer additional opportunities to assess student achievement in core curricular areas using a different format than is used in the Iowa Assessments achievement batteries.

Iowa Writing Assessment - The Iowa Writing Assessment (IWA) is a set of materials and procedures that permits a school system to conduct its own writing assessment in any of grades 3-12. The purpose of the program is to assess students' abilities to generate, organize, and express their ideas in response to specific writing situations.Info source: https://itp.education.uiowa.edu/ia/default.aspx

Special Considerations for the Above Assessments

Iowa has no assessment requirements for promotion or for high school graduation.

Iowa has already implemented its own form of Common Core State Standards (Iowa Core) and data collection tools. Source: https://www.educateiowa.gov/iowacore

Governor Branstad and Iowa Department of Education Director Brad Buck sent a joint letter to SBAC on July 29, indicating that the state would be withdrawing from the consortium immediately. The letter reads that the Iowa Assessment Taskforce is studying the state’s assessment needs and will release its recommendations by January 1, 2015.

Branstad and Buck continue: “To honor the work of the taskforce, Iowa will not sign a new Memorandum of Understanding with the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium as requested. We recognize that by declining to sign that Iowa will no longer be a governing state in the consortium. We request that Iowa’s withdrawal be effective immediately, and that the consortium no longer list Iowa as a member state.”

Procedures for Opt-out/Refusal

1. Submit an opt out letter to the school site administrator, which includes your rights as the parent or legal guardian of the student (see Get Tough Guide on UOO website).



2. Provide your own written statement that you are aware you are not required to keep your child home during the testing window. 3. Secure an alternative in school academic assignments/activities for your child during the testing window. 4. Know the legal requirements for high school graduation, but advocate for alternative assessments to be used to determine student proficiency in the required subjects such as a portfolio review for elementary and middle school students, all of which are voluntary and will provide the parent with the student's actual completed work demonstrating proficiency. 4. Be adamant in your resolve to exempt your child from testing, which can include any or all the following:

● Seeking legal assistance ● Seeking police protection if your child meets with verbal or physical force in an

attempt to have him/her report to a testing area● Organizing and attending regular meetings with opt out support groups or consult

online groups● Contacting any of the United Opt Out administrators for additional support or

information

Urgency for Opt-out/Refusal

Testing in Iowa is very low stakes in comparison to many states. Children are not retained or prohibited from graduating from high school as a consequence of testing. However, reform measures are questioned by many educators, students, parents, and tax paying citizens, as it seems federal policy has taken away state rights and local control of education. Also, the increase in the amount of assessments along with privacy changes not passed by the federal congress in FERPA, the laws that protect a student’s privacy, raise concerns.

Sample Language to Include in Opt-out/RefusalSample Opt Out Letter

To Whom It May Concern:

Please be advised that our child will not be participating in state standardized testing during the current school year. Furthermore, we ask that no record of this testing be part of our child's permanent file, as we do not wish our child to participate in standardized achievement testing for promotion, graduation, or school/state report cards.

We believe the following of forced, high-stakes testing:



● Is not scientifically-based and fails to follow the U.S. Government's own data on learning

● Fosters test-driven education that is not meeting the individual/intellectual needs of students

● Presents a racial and economic bias detrimental to English Language Learners, impoverished students, and students of color

● Violates fiscal fairness in funding schools ● Supports complicity of corporate interests rather than democracy based on public

concerns ● Fosters coercion over cooperation with regards to federal funding for public

education ● Promotes a culture of lying, cheating, and exploitation within the school

community● Has used the achievement gap to foster a “de facto” segregation that has resulted

in separate and unequal education for minorities

We understand that federal law provides the parent or guardian the right of choice regarding standardized testing when such testing violates beliefs. In contrast to our beliefs, which are firmly rooted in a moral code that embraces equity and fairness, we believe such testing is not in the best interests of our child since it fosters competition instead of cooperation, contributes to separate and unequal education for minorities, and belies our child's intellectual, creative, and problem-solving abilities, while presenting a fictitious picture as to the impact of the pedagogy provided by our child's individual educators.

Ultimately, our state is required to provide our child with an education in a least restrictive environment that does not force us to go against our core beliefs. My child should proceed to learn and develop at an individual pace following education standards that are imparted under the guidance of education professionals, not market-based reformers, who are able to provide quality pedagogy without fear of reprisal if students - who mature at vastly different levels and come from diverse backgrounds that may or may not be supportive of intellectual pursuit - do not hit the bulls' eye of a constantly moving achievement target.

Therefore, we request that the school provide appropriate learning activities during the testing window as our child opts out of standardized testing.

Sincerely,

Child's Name ____________________________________________

ID#_________________________

Resources and Organizations



Noelle Jaddaoui at [email protected] for opting out information

State Specific Watch-List

Students First Iowa http://www.studentsfirst.org/pages/iowas-plan-for-education-reform

Michelle Rhee http://www.blogforiowa.com/2013/05/21/michelle-rhee-group-students-first-to-increase-presence-in-iowa/

Additional or Miscellaneous Information

“Smarter Balanced Assessments language was in fact removed from House Bill (HF 215). The conference committee removed the “consortium” language that would not limit Iowa to Smarter Balanced Consortia. They are pushing any new assessment off to the 2016-2017 school year and are creating a task force that will study this issue, including cost. The task force will have to report their findings to the Director of the Iowa Department of Education, the Iowa State Board of Education and the Iowa Legislature by January 1, 2015.”


iowa opt out guide final 8.8.2014

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