N.J. school boards push to halt PARCC requirements

Washington Township's school board is calling for the state to reimburse the district $5 million for PARCC's costs.

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- A South Jersey school district is taking a bold stance against the PARCC standardized test after it voted Monday night to approve a resolution calling for the Department of Education to halt key aspects of the controversial statewide assessment program.

The Washington Township Board of Education, in Gloucester County, is the third district in the state to pass a resolution that aims to prevent a minimum passing score on PARCC to be required to graduate high school. Similar calls to action were approved by school boards in Hopewell Township and Highland Park, according to the New Jersey School Board Association's Deputy Executive Director Frank Belluscio.

Like Washington Township's, Highland Park's and Hopewell's boards are also seeking to stop the test from being used in teacher evaluations. Washington Township went one step further, as it also requested a full reimbursement of how much it cost the district to implement the computer-based testing system -- a grand total of $5 million.

"There comes a point in time, as board members, that we have to get out of our board rooms when there are issues that affect student achievement and let our voices be heard, that we are not in agreement with this," said Washington Township's school board President Ginny Murphy.

A spokesman for the state Department of Education said they receive numerous resolutions from school boards every year and while it had not yet received Washington Township's, it would be reviewed by the commissioner.

The resolution landed on the board's dias Monday as preparation for the second year of PARCC testing ramps up and raises fresh concerns from parents, said Murphy.

PARCC 2015 test results

The township's resolution aims to prevent the requirement the some form of standardized test be used in assessing whether a student can graduate in the intervening years. Currently, students can use PARCC, the SATs, ACTs, military-centric ASVAB or a portfolio appeal to secure approval for graduation.  

Instead, the resolution aims to allow students to get the same approval based on earned credits, grade point averages, attendance and other local graduation requirements during the multi-year transition.

An NJEA spokesman, Matt Stagliano, said the union was in full support of the local board efforts and underscored the fact the other tests come at a cost to students, are often held outside of school hours, and that the ASVAB in particular is not based on any current school curriculum.

"The graduation requirement is a complete mess," said Stagliano, adding N.J. is one of only two states in the nation that use PARCC as a graduation requirement. "I think that speaks to why we should not be doing this for the sake of our children."

Murphy also pointed to the growing trend of colleges and universities making SAT scores optional for admittance after findings showed no correlation to student achievement during college years.

She and the board aren't against standardized testing as a whole, she stressed, but they're against how the tests are being used. 

"We certainly don't feel the high stakes being placed on it are necessary," said Murphy.

A state DOE spokesman said there are no plans to change the implementation of PARCC's use in evaluations, which is mandated by state law. Students' growth year over year, from PARCC test to PARCC test and not specific results, makes up 10 percent of language arts and math teachers' overall evaluation.

In the meantime, advocates are trying to get Washington Township's actions to spur surrounding districts in the area to pass similar resolutions and unite more school boards behind the PARCC pushback. 

"When parents see this, and see there's a possibility where their district can speak up for them on behalf of their children, [they say] 'Well, I want them to speak up for my children too,'" said Staglione of the NJEA. "I think that's a very inspirational thing."