Parents fighting secret government tests

WND

Parents are pulling their students out of Common Core testing procedures by the droves, and now someone has leaked test material onto the Internet. It’s just the beginning of the resistance to the federally orchestrated management of children, according to the author of a new book on education policy.

Alex Newman, author of “Crimes of the Educators: How Utopians Are Using Government Schools to Destroy America’s Children,” says federal bureaucrats have forced parents into a corner.  

What happens next, he says, is anyone’s guess, and the entire educational establishment is right to have concerns.

In an exclusive interview with WND, Newman cautioned, “By ignoring the growing outcry of parents, teachers, and students over Common Core and the federally funded testing regime, policymakers have created a situation in which people feel they have no choice left but to engage in civil disobedience.

“If education bureaucrats, lawmakers, and governors were listening to the public instead of to Bill Gates, the Obama administration, and special interests, we would not be having this discussion – Common Core would have been gone before it ever got started.”

One group opposed to the Common Core testing standards leaked the answers to New York’s English Language Arts exam on its Facebook page Wednesday, forcing part of the test to be rewritten for next year.

And thousands of students are also opting out of taking the tests, with as many as 82 percent of students refusing the test in one Long Island school district. Several other districts have reported a majority refusing to participate.

Some school officials have condemned those who are encouraging students to opt out. But Newman says Common Core proponents only have themselves to blame.

“One key issue here is the fact that we have secret tests to begin with,” Newman said. “Parents need to be in the driver’s seat when it comes to their children’s education. By having secret tests that students are prohibited from discussing or sharing with parents, widespread suspicion is the obvious result.”

Do you have children in school? Grandchildren? Know someone with children in school? You’ll want to see “Crimes of the Educators: How Utopians Are Using Government Schools to Destroy America’s Children,” as soon as possible.

Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly condemned the secrecy.

“Parents should be able to see the tests their children take, especially after the testing period is completed as in this case. The current testing scheme under Common Core, in which private publishers and education bureaucrats conspire to block access to tests and keep parents in the dark, is completely inappropriate.”

Newman favors shedding a little light.

“The Common Core tests funded by the Obama administration and imposed on states with federal bribes need to go. Period. But until then, opting out and shining the light on what is going on will be crucial.”

Parents around the country have complained the new standards are harming their children. Newman advises angry parents to take action.

“The most important action parents can take to resist Common Core at this point is to remove their children from schools that use it – primarily government schools, but also some private ones,” he said. “I argue that, considering the current state of what passes for government education, parents have a duty to do this, at least until the schools are fixed.

“Other than that, for parents who for whatever reason have no choice, I think opting out of the federal testing regime is hugely important. These tests are gathering unprecedented amounts of data on students for the federal government – information gathering and data-mining on a scale that Orwell could never have imagined in his worst nightmares. The federally funded testing regime is also a key enforcement mechanism for Common Core. If parents refuse to allow their children to take these tests, the education establishment is eventually going to have to listen.”

Opposition to Common Core has spread far beyond New York, with legislative action against Common Core developing in 30 states.

It’s also likely to emerge as a major issue in the 2016 elections. According to a bipartisan survey of activists, operatives, and elected officials in Iowa and New Hampshire conducted by POLITICO, Common Core is the No. 1 issue Jeb Bush faces with caucus-goers. Bush has been a prominent supporter of Common Core, but is backing away from the issue as the national education standards become more unpopular.

Newman and co-author and longtime educator Samuel Blumenfeld write in “Crimes of the Educators,” Common Core is only one element of what Newman calls an “insidious” agenda for the “globalization of education.”

“If parents just knew what UNESCO [The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization] and Education Secretary Arne Duncan were openly saying about their ‘cradle-to-career’ education agenda, they would be shocked and appalled,” Newman claimed.

“In ‘Crimes of the Educators,’ Sam and I go through these documents and expose the real agenda here.

“It is not pretty, at least for anyone who values biblical religion, liberty, prosperity, markets, family, Western traditions, or any of the values underpinning our civilization and our republic.”

Because of the perceived threat posed by Common Core, many prominent conservatives and education activists are urging parents to educate themselves by reading “Crimes of the Educators.”

Schlafly calls it “must reading for every parent” and says, “The title of this book used the word ‘crimes’ and that is not too strong a word to describe what has been done to American children.”

Donald Potter, educator and editor of First Readers Anthology, calls the book “the culmination of over four decades of research into the causes for the decline of education in America. Blumenfeld and Newman have utterly exposed those most responsible for improving education and explain how they have purposefully pursued educational policies and teacher training methods that have contributed significantly to its decline. Beyond painting a dark picture of the educational landscape and identifying the perpetrators, they give practical recommendations for restoring excellence in education.”

Activist and talk show host Bob Just added, “The political timing of ‘Crimes of the Educators’ couldn’t be better. If a single book can tear down the liberal wall against school choice, this will be the one. Americans concerned about Common Core, in-your-face leftist educators, and out of control teachers unions, should arm themselves and their families with this impressive publication.”

And Ron Paul notes, “One does not need agree with Samuel Blumenfield and Alex Newman on everything to agree that ‘Crimes of the Educators’ makes a compelling case that America’s public education system must undergo radical change if future generations are to have any chance of living in a free and prosperous country.”

The book is currently a No. 1 best seller in the category of “experimental educational methods” at Amazon.com. But Newman says informing parents about the danger of Common Core and the larger agenda of the education establishment is only the beginning.

“The public is up against some very powerful forces here,” he said. “But parents protecting their kids and teachers trying to do their job represent an immensely powerful force to be reckoned with. As long as the public outrage is not diverted or soothed with rebranding schemes, I think there is a very real chance that Common Core could be quashed. It will take a lot of effort, though.

“One encouraging development I’ve seen with Common Core is that parents are finally starting to take a closer look at what is going on in the government schools. The implications of this exposure, if it continues and grows, could send shockwaves that might ultimately bring down the education establishment itself.”
Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/parents-fighting-secret-government-tests/#fdEb3VBTF7V1oSvm.99