Teachers at three Seattle schools are refusing to give students district-mandated standardized exams, one of the most dramatic moves in an escalating fight nationwide over using test scores to evaluate teachers and schools.
The Seattle boycott, which began in one of the schools and spread in recent weeks, comes after the district decided to make the tests part of Seattle teachers’ evaluations this year. But it follows long-standing complaints by the teachers that the computerized exams take up too much instructional time and force schools to close off computer labs for long stretches to administer the exams.