Victor Skinner
EAGnews
3/11/2014
ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Poor students don’t learn as well as rich students, and Rochester teachers shouldn’t be evaluated on how their poverty-stricken students perform on state tests.
That’s the sad argument the Rochester Teachers Association is making in a recent lawsuit it filed against New York Regents and the state’s education department in the wake of 2012-13 state test results.
“The suit, filed in state Supreme Court in Albany by New York State United Teachers on behalf of the RTA and more than 100 Rochester teachers, argues the State Education Department did not adequately account for student poverty in setting student growth scores on state tests in grades 4-8 math and English language arts,” according to a press release on the NYSUT website.
“In addition, (the state education department) imposed rules for Student Learning Objectives and implemented evaluations in a way that made it more difficult for teachers of economically disadvantaged students to achieve a score of ‘effective’ or better.
“As a result, the lawsuit alleges the Regents and (state education department) violated teachers’ rights to fair evaluations and equal protection under the law.”
In other words, kids from low income families can’t learn, and teachers should not be expected to help them learn…
The article continues at EAGnews.
