EdAction
Maple River Education Coalition PAC
 105 Peavey Rd, St 116 
Chaska, MN  55318 
952-361-4931
http://www.EdAction.org
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November 2, 2001
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NAEP Hidden Only From Parents

Background:

The  article on the left was submitted for publication as an opinion column in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, whose editor then indicated it was unlikely there would be space in the paper to publish it.

The New Education System redefines the role of the media. The role of the media is now to advocate for the new system, not to report on it in an accurate and objective manner. Margaret Stimman Branson, Associate Director of the Center for Civic Education (CCE) explains the strategy this way:

"...the media are important influences and have significant contributions to make to civic education, and their support should be enlisted." (See their webpage) (Note: The CCE defines Civics and Government for the entire country, as authorized by federal law. CCE National Standards are incorporated into the NAEP test.)

Opposition to the new education and workforce system seldom finds its way into the mainline media. The media is being "enlisted," as Ms. Branson describes it.

The October 25th St. Paul Pioneer Press article and the October 24th Education Week article regarding excerpts from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) being posted on the Maple River Education Coalition (MREdCo) website entirely missed the most important point of public interest.

The National Assessment Governing Board calls posting the NAEP a "security breach." What is this nonsense about "security"? The truth is that the supposed "security" of the NAEP extends only to parents. Everyone else seems to have access! Any branch of government and many corporations have total access to the NAEP questions and to the detailed data gathering it conducts on students, schools, teachers, private homes and communities. The RAND Corporation, the Department of Agriculture, MPR Associates, Stanford University and the National Goals Panel are just a few known examples of groups with access to the NAEP questions and databases.

So why are parents denied access to the NAEP questions? Could it be because two-thirds of the NAEP asks questions about personal information and family habits? Of the remaining third, many of the questions measure students' personal opinions and assess viewpoints that many would disagree with or find objectionable. (See more on the NAEP)

Furthermore, with the new federal legislation about to be passed by Congress, the NAEP will be instantly transformed from the "Nations's Report Card" to the national dictator of curriculum in all schools in the country. Tests always drive the curriculum, and a national test forces a national curriculum. States will be given rewards and sanctions based on conformity with the NAEP. What business does the federal government have dictating the attitudes and values our schools must teach?

Does anyone really think a test with this much power ought not be reviewed and critiqued by the public? Other nationally norm-referenced tests, such as the Iowa Basics, are available for viewing, why not the NAEP?

The NAEP has been marketed to the public for over three decades as an academic achievement assessment. If the NAEP were available to parents, the public would demand that it be rewritten to focus on basic academic knowledge and to eliminate offensive propaganda that intrudes into the private lives and worldviews of families.

Julie M. Quist
Maple River Education Coalition