Changes to KRA led by MCEA union leaders from Elementary Councils on Teaching and Learning

     

Teachers actively advocate that we’ve swung the testing pendulum too far. They wish for a redefinition of accountability in schools where the measurement is how much time do you give students to learn and how much time do you give teachers to plan for great instruction. At an Elementary Councils on Teaching and Learning (CTL) meeting, PJ Friend was appointed the Kindergarten educator who would describe what it is like to test all kindergarten students in a class at the very beginning of the school year.

PJ Friend Kindergarten Educator at Rachel Carson ES

The Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) was designed to measure a student’s readiness for kindergarten based in four main domains. It is supposed to be an achievement gap tool, but many educators stated that the way the test was designed only furthered the achievement gap. Precious time often used setting up a rapport with students and developing routines for school were dismantled by the test’s length and invasive process.

Friend said it is important that the union focus on matters involving curriculum and instruction because, “Teachers are the front lines. We have to implement what MCPS is asking us to do and if the union isn’t involved we wouldn’t have the backing and support we need to handle that responsibility.”

She and others first went to the kindergarten folder and reviewed comments, then brought it to CTL. Soon Friend was chosen by President Betty Weller of Maryland State Education Association (MSEA)  to speak to MSDE and at the General Assembly. Friend stated that she never could have made the changes she and others wanted for their students without the help of MCEA and MSEA.

PJ Friend right at a CTL meeting

“The union let me talk about it. Gave me someone who would listen. Pointed me to others who I needed to talk to. I wrote my testimonies, but they helped me polish it and coached me. If the KRA was just a bunch of teachers talking about it, it wouldn’t have gone anywhere,” Friend said.

The new policy, because of the collective action of unionized teachers means big changes for Montgomery County. The test will be a sampling of kids instead of everyone. The state will determine which children to test and it could be as few as two kids per class. According to MCPS, that is only 10% of students in a class.

“This gives kindergartners the ability to be with their teacher, especially in the first few weeks of school. The changes help teachers be able to start instruction and reading groups sooner. We can start our schedule right away and get the routines of the classroom down. It is an all over good change,” Friend advocated.