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----- Original Message -----
From: Joan Almon
To: mimi noorani
Cc: JAlmon@...
Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2001 6:13 AM
Subject: SOS on high stakes testing

Dear Friends,
My apologies if you received an email from me last night without an attachment. Here is the correct material which describes the current status in Congressional committees for passing a bill that will authorize yet more standardized tests for America's children. Already, we are seeing that the emphasis being put on tests is literally making children sick. It is time to protest, and today and the next few days are the time to reach out to the committees. (See letter below or attachment which are the same.) The only hope we can see for a change of heart and mind in Congress is if the members hear from many parents and educators why federally mandated testing is a bad idea - from an educational perspective but also from a health perspective. They've heard the educational arguments before. It's time they heard the stories of test-related stress which live in so many families now.

Thanks for your help on this one. If possible, please let Congress know your thoughts and speed this message on to other concerned parents, educators and medical professionals.

All the best, Joan Almon, Coordinator, US Alliance for Childhood

________________________

Dear Parents and Educators,

This week Congress is considering a new federal requirement that states test children every year in third to eighth grade, as part of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The Alliance for Childhood believes that many children's education and health are already threatened by the amount of standardized testing to which they are subjected. This new requirement will certainly add even more stress and pressure to their lives, with no clear gain.

The Alliance for Childhood is a national partnership of educators, physicians, researchers, and children's advocates. We are calling on Congress and the President to rethink this new testing requirement and to enact instead protections for children against the misuse of test results for making high-stakes decisions about graduation, promotion, and placement. We are also calling for research on the health effects of test-related stress and anxiety in children. The full text of our call to action is posted on our Web site: www.allianceforchildhood.net, along with information about who we are.

We are working to mobilize opposition to the high-stakes testing push. Now is the time to let Congress know your views - both your educational concerns and your experiences, if any, with your children's stress in relation to standardized tests. We hope you will contact your Senators and Representatives in Congress and let them know how you feel. In addition, if you would like us to include your own testimony about your children's experiences in our research, please e-mail Ed Miller, the coordinator of the Alliance's testing initiative, at edmiller@....

There are three key points we are communicating to the President and Congress. You may have others.

a.. Congress should put off new testing requirements until they have studied the health impact of present testing practices on children. Anecdotal evidence indicates an "exponential increase" in stress at testing time, as one school nurse reported. Small levels of stress can enhance a child's performance; high levels can do physical and psychological harm, besides resulting in lower test scores.
b.. Congress should protect children by prohibiting the growing practice of making high-stakes decisions about individual students' promotion, graduation, or placement in low-track classes on the basis of a single test. This would put the force of law behind the currently unenforced ethical standards of the testing profession and the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences.
c.. Congress should provide incentives for states and localities to develop alternative, performance-based assessments. Such assessments will measure not just the ability to memorize facts but also the capacity for original thinking, real-world problem solving, perseverance, and social responsibility and will hold real meaning for students, parents, schools, and communities.
The current situation with legislation is as follows: The Senate bill (S.1)will come to the Senate floor this week, possibly Tuesday. Therefore, contacting committee leadership and your own Senators needs to be done urgently. The House bill (H.R.1) is being marked up or drafted this week, probably Wednesday. Contacting committee leadership is also critical. Analysts feel that Congress will pass these bills, and federally mandated standardized tests will become the law of the land unless the public protests strongly. In particular, if your child has suffered unreasonable stress as a result of testing, legislators need to hear from you.

We urge you to fax, call, or email to the following: (mailing will be too late for this week's decisions.)

1.. Contact the Chair and ranking member of the House Committee on Education and the Work Force. This is vitally important if you live in the district of one of the representatives, but you should contact them even if you don't.
Rep. John A. Boehner (R-8-OH)

1011 Longworth House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

Tel. 202-225-6205

Fax 202 -225-0704

Email: john.boehner@...

Rep. George Miller (D-7-CA)

2205 Rayburn House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

Tel. 202-225-2095

Fax 202-225-5609

Email: george.miller@...

1.. Contact the Chair and ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP).
Senator James M. Jeffords (R-VT)

728 Senate Hart Office Building

Washington, DC 20510

Tel. 202-224-5141

Fax 202-228-0776

Email: vermont@...

Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)

315 Senate Russell Office Building

Washington, DC 20510

Tel. 202-224-4543

Fax 202-224-2417

Email: senator@...

2.. Contact your own Representative and Senators. They have a special ear for constituents. For a list see www.congress.gov
For the sake of the children, let's not give up on this issue. There's too much at stake.

Joan Almon

Coordinator, Alliance for Childhood