ALBANY, N.Y. March 20, 2020 — New York State United Teachers President Andy Pallotta issued the following statement today regarding the announcement by the federal government that it will waive standardized testing mandates for schools this year:
“This is not the time to create more stress for our kids, which is why we called on the federal government to take exactly this action on behalf of our students, educators and our schools. This decision rightly allows the school community to put our focus where it should be: On staying safe and healthy, rather than on preparing for tests at a time of significant disruption.”
Earlier this week, NYSUT called on U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to waive state testing mandates for children in grades 3-8 for the rest of the school year.
UPDATE: Here's a link to the full statement from Chancellor Rosa and Interim Commissioner Tahoe.
New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.