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Branford High School students have been airing their concerns with the Board of Education (BOE) on two separate issues: Pro-life displays of fetuses and standardized tests.
—Members of a pro-life club, who claimed they were being discriminated against, have reached an agreement with school officials regarding the use of displays. This action was taken in private meetings with school officials. The pro-life students were not present at the BOE meeting held last night.
—High school juniors told the BOE at the meeting that field tests for the state’s new standardized tests are interfering with their classwork and college preparation.
PRO-LIFE DISPLAYS
Samantha Bailey-Loomis, founder and president of Branford High School Students for Life, claimed that her first amendment rights of free speech were being denied. The club wanted to set up displays of literature and life-like models of fetuses in the cafeteria during lunch hours. Bailey-Loomis previously told the media that school administrators said the club’s displays were too controversial and could not be put up during the school day.
A press release was issued today by Superintendent Hamlet Hernandez and Michael Krause, chair of the BOE, stating that the matter has been resolved.
“The club has agreed to follow the procedures and guidelines set up by the administration,” Krause told the Eagle today. “They will be able to set up their displays.”
Krause said displays during the lunch hours can include pamphlets, letters and a billboard, but not the life-like fetal models. “They agreed not to use the models during lunch but they will be allowed to use them during the club’s free periods.”
Krause said talks with club members were very constructive.
Diana Stricker Photo
This is the press release from Krause and Hernandez: “The Branford High School Students for Life (BHSSFL) club recently brought several concerns to the attention of the administration of the Branford Public Schools. The Branford Board of Education is pleased to report that, following a constructive dialogue, the concerns brought by BHSSFL have been addressed and the issues surrounding those concerns have been resolved. The Board applauds the Superintendent’s office, the high school administration and BHSSFL leadership for their efforts to resolve BHSSFL’s concerns in a manner consistent with the mission statement and institutional priorities of the Branford Public Schools.” Krause and Hernandez are pictured last night at the BOE meeting.
A phone call to Hernandez seeking comment was not immediately returned.
The issue came to the forefront last week when a national group backed up the local club’s claims that they were being denied the opportunities given to other Branford High School clubs.
Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, based in Manassas, VA, started an e‑mail campaign asking people to contact the superintendent and express their concern. She also contacted the media. Hawkins stated in her e‑mail: “We cannot sit back while our pro-life students are denied their constitutional rights and bullied by their school administrators. At Branford High School, there is a double standard for pro-life students, and, with your help, we can expose this injustice and correct it.”
After Bailey-Loomis founded the club last year, there was an article about it in the school newspaper, the Branford Buzz. It stated the club’s mission statement, that students would “work to protect life from conception to natural death, particularly those lives threatened by abortion, infanticide, embryonic stem cell research and euthanasia. In furtherance of these goals, members seek to promote respect from life Branford High School and on a local, state and national level, to educate on life issues, to help those in need so that life is a promising choice and to work with others who share common goals.”
SMARTER BALANCED TESTS
Juniors at Branford High School are upset they’re being asked to participate in a field test of the new Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) this year, when they’re already bombarded with standardized college admission tests.
Diana Stricker Photo
“They’re not seeing it as an opportunity. They’re seeing it as a nuisance,” said Michael Caminear, (pictured), a student representative to the Board of Education (BOE).
“It is a very overwhelming time…. March through May is definitely the most stressful time for juniors,” said BOE student representative Megan Shea.
The computerized SBAC field tests are slated to begin in Branford schools Tuesday. The tests are not quite ready to be used as an actual assessment tool, so millions of students nationwide are being asked to take the field tests to help the test-makers fine-tune the exam. No scores will be generated.
The discussion at Wednesday’s BOE meeting began when Superintendent Hernandez asked the student representatives about the 11th graders’ reactions to the tests.
Shea said she will miss four advanced placement calculus classes to take the field tests. “It’s really difficult when you miss multiple classes,” she said, adding that she is the only junior in the class.
“I would encourage you to bring that to the attention of the administration and the teacher,” Hernandez told her.
One 11th grade student Ben Greenvall, who is not a student representative, asked to address the board. “I don’t think anyone in Branford High School is taking this test seriously,” he said, adding that he doubts if any data from the test will be meaningful.
“I am going to be completely honest,” he said. “My grades are what matter to me, not this test.”
Hernandez said he is aware of the juniors’ frustration. “I understand that for some students in some grades that it’s a little more stressful than others,” he said. “I understand Ben’s point relative to the relevancy of it.”
The computerized tests, which will be given in English/Literacy and Math, are expected to take about 3 ½ hours per subject, but will be given in Branford in 45-minute blocks to reduce test fatigue.
Hernandez said he will provide feedback to the state when the testing is finished, including the students’ reactions.
“I can appreciate all the different viewpoints relative to the Smarter Balanced assessments that we will be starting on Tuesday and the complexities associated with that. I do want to reiterate that I do not have authority to grant anyone an opt-out option. That is very, very clear from the state of Connecticut,” Hernandez told the students and the board.
BACKGROUND ON TESTS
Juniors typically take college admission tests like the SAT, ACT and Advanced Placement tests in the spring. The Connecticut Academic Performance Tests (CAPT) have always been given during 10th grade. But the CAPT tests are being replaced by the SBAC tests which will be given in 11th grade.
In the elementary and middle schools, the SBAC will replace the Connecticut Mastery Tests (CMT), which were given in 3rd through 8th grades. Students in these grades will also be taking the SBAC field tests this year, and it is argued that this will give them practice for next year when they take the actual exams. The 11th graders will not benefit from practice, since they won’t be taking the test next year.
Parents of 11th graders who attended last month’s BOE meeting told the board that field test should be given to10th graders since it would be practice for them for next year.
States are mandated to begin the real SBAC testing during the 2014 – 15 school year. The achievement tests are based on the new Common Core State Standards which have been adopted by 45 states. School districts were supposed to be developing curriculums based on the Common Core Standards. The tests and the standards have become mired in controversy. Click here to read about that.
Connecticut is among 23 states that will use the SBAC tests. The other states, including New York and Massachusetts, will use a different test — the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). According to the SBAC web site, each state decided which test to use and how schools and students would be selected to participate in the field tests. Some states are only requiring 10 percent participation in the field tests.
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