Rouge Forum
| THE
REVISED SCHOOL CODE (EXCERPT) Act 451 of 1976 380.10 Rights of parents and legal guardians; duties of public schools. [M.S.A. 15.4010 ] Sec. 10. It is the natural, fundamental right of parents and legal guardians to determine and direct the care, teaching, and education of their children. The public schools of this state serve the needs of the pupils by cooperating with the pupil's parents and legal guardians to develop the pupil's intellectual capabilities and vocational skills in a safe and positive environment. HistoryAdd. 1995, Act 289, Eff. July 1, 1996 |
This fundamental statement in the Michigan school code is the legal underpinning for the right to exempt our children from the MEAP test. Here's an analysis and commentary on this relationship by a teacher and father-to-be, Greg Queen with editing and additions by Michael Peterson
Any
child that I teach has the right to opt their children out of
anything. Parents often complain that teachers are not helping
their children learn what they want their son/daughter to learn.
When this occurs, teachers have had to provide alternatives.
They may be removed from one teacher's classroom and placed into
another teachers classroom. The teacher may work with the parent
to accommodate their needs.
Related to the school code, many parents will not want their children
to take the meap test because it works against developing
"the pupils intellectual capabilities". The MEAP
actually makes people less intellectual, less able to figure their
world. Their only choice is to obey authority.
Secondly, parents have "the fundamental right ... to determine
and direct the care, teaching, and education" of their
children. It is not unreasonable to ask the district to provide
some other care, teaching or education for my child other than
the MEAP tests.
Thirdly, the MEAP does not promote a positive environment. The
stress level is high, the potential consequences may be that the
child develops lower self-esteem if the test score is not considered
good. When teachers ask students why test scores in particular
districts are higher than in their districts, they have said
(almost in unison) that the students in the lower scoring district
must be "stupid."
When teachers and administrators say that children must take the
test, parents should stand firm and ask for proof that what he/she
is saying is indeed fact-that students can not opt out. Unless
it is written into a rule or law, a person does not have to do
it. Where does it say that a parent can not opt out. Where
does it say that every child must take the tests? The MEAP manual
says there are not parent opt out forms. It does not say that
parents can not opt out. There is still a place on the testing
sheets where the district can identify students who were not tested
which implies that there are students who will not be tested and
one of them is the parent you are communicating with.
For the state to require that children be tested against parent's consent, this would need to be written into state law and documented in guidelines and policies of the Michigan Department of Treasury that administers the MEAP examination. Thes simply don't exist. Given that most Michigan parents would not allow such mandates, this requirement has not been, is not now, and is unlikely in the future to become law. Despite this fact, it is clear that schools are receiving much pressure from the state to have as many children take the exam as possible. Educators may pass such pressure on to parents. But the fact is they have no right to do so.
TAKE ME TO THE . . .