It looks like we are getting closer to some kind of bill from Albany regarding parent opt out rights with a controversial bill introduced by Catherine Nolan. Jim Tedesco claims portions of his bill were plagiarized to create the Nolan bill below.
His main concern is the new bill leaves out the requirement that parents are notified of their rights. We liked that part of the Tedesco bill, we also like a portion of Catherine Nolan’s bill that directly addresses protections for parents who opt out in section 3 below. Unfortunately those protections are extended to people who have a vested interest in the results (or lack of). This problem along with Jim Tedesco’s observation makes this bill in need of revision.
A. that this webpage is not an official copy the Ao6777 NYS Senate bill which can be found here – http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?default_fld=%0D%0A&bn=A06777&term=2015&Summary=Y&Text=Y
B. this webpage may contain errors.
C. this webpage is for entertainment use only.
If you disagree, stop reading and visit google.com
A06777 text:
St a t e o f N e w Yy o r k
________________________________________________________________________
6777
2015-2016 regular sessions
iIn a s s e m b l y
April 2, 2015
___________
Introduced by m. Of a. Nolan, russell, arroyo, blake, colton, cook, fahy, kaminsky, linares, lifton, o’donnell, scarborough, silver, simon, solages, thiele, otis — multi-sponsored by — m. Of a. Glick, hevesi, magee, markey, mosley, rivera, walker — read once and referred to the committee on education
An act to amend the education law, in relation to providing parents with the right and authority to exempt their children from taking standardized assessments
The people of the state of new york, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
.
section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 319 to read as follows:
.
S 319. Student exemption from standardized assessments.
1. A parent of a student or person in parental relationship to a student shall have the right and authority to exempt such student from taking standardized assessments, including but not limited to the state third grade through eighth grade math and english language arts assessments, a state field test assessment or a state assessment administered for purposes of, or pursuant to, section three thousand twelve-c of this chapter. The parent of a student or person in parental relationship to the student shall notify the school principal in writing or other verifiable means, as determined by the school district, at any time prior to the administration of such assessment or assessments.
2. The school shall offer to students exempted by their parents or persons in parental relation from a standardized assessment pursuant to this section alternative educational or enrichment programs during the time that such standardized assessment is administered.
3. There shall be no retaliation or other negative action against a student, parent, teacher, principal or building administrator, school building or school district in response to a parent’s exemption of a student from standardized assessments pursuant to this section. –Emphasis by whydad.net
s 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Related –
It was suggested that our concerns of incentivizing fear and coercion for vested interests were poorly conceived…
On 3/24/2015, the Delaware PTA issued a statement in support of a parents right to opt out of the Smarter Balanced Assessments.
“Delaware PTA will not encourage any parent to opt their child out of the test. We firmly believe each decision and subsequent reason for opting out is unique. We also firmly believe that this is a personal decision that must be made by the parental unit.”
Later on in the statement, they felt it necessary to include this language:
“Address parent/teacher concerns of fear and/or intimidation regarding the parent opt out”
The Delaware Opt Out movement seemed to be happy with the positions taken by their PTA “This is a HUGE step in the opt out movement Delaware parents! “
Hats off to the Delaware PTA for their willingness to recognize all of the concerns raised by their members.
In the Facebook group Stop Common Core In New York State, parents have begun posting a variety of allegations concerning direct discussions between teachers and students regarding the NY standardized tests. Some of them are quoted below:
In our article titled Superintendent Paladino was right for the wrong reasons , we commented that it was wrong for teachers to talk directly to parents about the tests when they have a vested interest in the results. We suggested that doing this would inadvertently remove a parents right to refuse without fear, coercion or worse. As a hypothetical example, we put forth this scenario:
… imagine you are a parent and your child’s teacher talks to you about test refusals. After the conversation, what do you do if you were planning on your child taking the test? If you allow the test to be taken anyway, will this teacher take it out on your child at school? Will the last regular grade of the year be mysteriously low? Will your child be marked as testing trouble by other teachers in the future?
The negative mental questions a parent can think of are limitless. As a parent, your only logical choice is to refuse the test to avoid any questionable activity by the teacher now or in the future.
The Bill of Rights guarantees every American citizen a variety of individual freedoms that may be enjoyed without fear, coercion or reprisal from the government. Teachers are government employees and if the above allegations are true, they may have instilled a coercive atmosphere into children and their parents. There should be no protection for this kind of activity as it is a breeding ground for government corruption and tyranny.
In NY, a few well meaning politicians have written a bill to dispel the confusion surrounding parental rights in refusing test participation by ensuring parents are aware of their right to refuse. An action that is nearly moot at this point unless you live in a cave. Nonetheless, a required statement like this will certainly serve as a reminder of parental rights long after this controversy settles down.
The real problem lies within a sentence on the petition website produced by these politicians:
“The bill protects teachers from being penalized in their evaluations due to a lack of student participation “
We believe the statement nearly guarantees (and incentivizes) teachers will turn up their attempts to persuade children and parents to refuse a test instead of placing their monetary & labor concerns where they belong; with their union representatives who are supposed to negotiate with elected public servants who represent the interests of people. As we have said before, refusing the state tests should remain a personal choice and right without influence from teachers and administrators who have a vested interest in the results.
In conclusion, we would hope the writers of this petition consider the rights guaranteed to all Americans are not be used as a bargaining chip in an Albany labor dispute.
Related –
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Voorheesville Central School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Voorheesville Central School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Voorheesville Central School District results are abnormal.
Item | Voorheesville CSD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 101 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 14:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $67,350.48 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $374.17 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 27 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 26.8% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $156,800 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.7% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 1,350 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Albany City School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Albany City School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Albany City School District results are abnormal.
Item | Albany City SD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 677 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 15:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $74,640.71 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $414.67 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 389 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 57.5% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $2,434,131 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 1.2% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 19,450 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Watervliet City School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Watervliet City School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Watervliet City School District results are abnormal.
Item | Watervliet City SD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 112 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 17:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $55,172.64 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $306.51 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 7 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 6.3% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $35,390 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.2% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 350 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District results are abnormal.
Item | Berne-Knox-Westerlo CSD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 77 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 12:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $59,474.04 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $330.41 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 22 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 28.6% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $117,066 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.6% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 1,100 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Bethlehem Central School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Bethlehem Central School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Bethlehem Central School District results are abnormal.
Item | Bethlehem CSD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 375 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 12:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $67,411.39 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $374.51 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 124 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 33.0% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $720,583 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.8% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 6,200 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District results are abnormal.
Item | Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk CSD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 190 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 12:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $58,939.87 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $327.44 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 71 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 37.4% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $375,464 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.9% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 3,550 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook
Below is a breakdown of teacher absence costs for the Cohoes City School District. These numbers were reported to various Federal and State agencies in 2011-2012. To our knowledge, they have never been compiled in this manner. The individual district results can vary widely with some being very normal and others seeming to be completely out of normal. In some cases, public school teachers may be very sick. In other cases where up to 100% of the teachers are taking 10+ days off, there may be a serious systemic problem. Statewide concerns should be addressed directly to NY education officials and legislators. Those results are far beyond what normal should be as the Charter school totals suggest. As always we encourage parents and taxpayers to share this information.
District 2011-2012 details:
The results below should be higher as they only include information on fulltime Cohoes City School District teacher absences. A more accurate and much larger number would also include absences of the administration and other employees plus other costs such as health/welfare insurance. Additionally, our breakdown is based on the reported number of “10 or more days” and does not include exact absences beyond 10 days or amounts for teachers taking less than 10 days. We ask that you treat these numbers as a starting point for a discussion with local district officials if you feel the Cohoes City School District results are abnormal.
Item | Cohoes City SD | Statewide | Charter Schools |
Total Teachers | 169 | 205,497 | 5,019 |
Student : Teacher Ratio | 13:1 | 13:1 | 13:1 |
Avg. salary | $53,539.75 | $69,341 | $57,570 |
Avg. pay per day | $297.44 | $385 | $319 |
Teachers Absent 10+ days | 71 | 68,387 | 462.42 |
% of teachers absent 10+ days | 41.9% | 33% | 9.2% |
*Cost of absences | $350,806 | $421,739,779 | **$2,156,981 |
*Absence costs as a percent of spending | 0.9% | .08% | N/A |
*** Classes contracted for but substituted | 3,540 | 3,419,331 | 23,121 |
Average private sector sick days taken: 4 days or less per year. USDOL 2013 |
* Includes costs for 10 days of salary, substitutes (NYC rate of $165 per day) + 2011 pension rate of 11.11% .
** Excludes pensions as most charter schools use 401k’s or do not report.
*** Based on 5 classes per day
Data Sources: US Dept Of Labor, NY State Education Department. All data compiled and totaled in MS Excel using simple math commands. If the numbers above contain significant “No Data” results, that is because the district or NYS did not report the information at the time the datasets were compiled.
Absenteeism group on Facebook