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Nojay and Palmesano’s Reaction To Common Core News From Gov. Cuomo

September 3, 2015
 
 
ALBANY, NY – Assemblyman Bill Nojay (R,) issued the following statement about Governor Andrew Cuomo’s announcement from Thursday afternoon, about Common Core:
 
“While I’m pleasantly surprised that Governor Cuomo has finally started listening to the concerns of parents, teachers and students, it has not come without serious consequences,” said Nojay. “Our state has been forced to stand by while the reputation of our teachers and schools has been tarnished and hundreds of thousands of kids have agonized through inappropriate tests. Instead of heeding the advice compiled by the Assembly Republicans the Governor decided he would play the blame game and drag his feet while the education of our students was compromised.
 
“The Governor supported the poorly conceived, poorly implemented Common Core tests for two years while parents, teachers and students protested and cried for relief. Although better late than never, the Governor’s delay in responding to the crisis and a near 20 percent opt-out rate hurt two years’ of kids educations they will never get back.
 
“Instead of more studies by education bureaucrats and politicians, it’s beyond time to return control over our kids’ education to educators and parents. Let’s stop treating our schools like petri dishes and our kids like guinea pigs – let local school districts decide how our kids are taught and treat teachers like professionals. ”
 
 
Assemblyman Phil Palmesano.
 
“This afternoon I was pleased to read a statement from Gov. Cuomo acknowledging that Common Core is simply not working. I am pleased he has finally reached this conclusion.
 
“I am, however, wary of another commission controlled by the governor. We need to act quickly and decisively to reform our broken education system in New York State. We need to work together to develop appropriate standards and generate a world-class education system by getting input from educators at all levels across our state. We need to make sure that school districts have the local control that allows administrators to make decisions that work for their students. And most of all, we have to quit our over-reliance on high-stakes, standardized testing.
 
“If we want to ensure our children receive the best education possible it is critical that we treat parents as partners, teachers as professionals and ensure our children’s self worth is not measured by what they do on a standardized test with a number two pencil.
 
“I am proud that our conference has led the way on this issue. We laid the foundation for comprehensive education reform by reaching out to parents, students and educators and really listening to them. We will continue to do that as this process moves forward to ensure that the voices of our parents, educators and children are heard.”


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