Nearly 68,000 elementary and middle school students in 95 districts across Long Island refused to take the state math test this week – 47.9 percent of students eligible in those systems to sit for the exam, according to responses this week to a Newsday survey sent to all 124 districts.
Friday was the end of the spring test season for most Long Island students in grades three through eight. It also marked the fifth straight year of large boycotts, with nearly half of the students opting out of exams both in math and in English Language Arts in the districts responding to the newspaper’s surveys.The English test is given first, usually in April.
The exams, mandated by federal law and formerly known as Common Core tests, sparked a revolt by parents and educators that started on Long Island and spread statewide. Those opposed to the assessments say they do not accurately measure student achievement and are not developmentally appropriate, and that the tests and preparation for them take up far too much class time.
