As the state legislature gets ready to go back into session, and as testing season gears up, education-related events are multiplying. If North Carolina education is to improve, we the public have to let our voices be heard. Please attend if you can – especially the May 10 rally.

Monday, April 21

“How Did Testing Get Out of Control and What Can We Do About It?”

Alexander Graham Middle School, 7-8:30 p.m.

This CMS parent-sponsored forum will examine out-of-control testing in North Carolina schools, focusing partly but not entirely on the Read to Achieve legislation that has caused such disruption in this year’s third grade classes.

Speakers will be Dr. Bruce Taylor of UNC Charlotte on the uses and misues of testing, State Representative Rob Bryan on what the legislature is doing regarding testing, and Pamela Grundy of MecklenburgACTS.org on national efforts to reduce high-stakes testing and how North Carolinians can join in. For more information, click here.

Saturday, May 10

Regional Rally for Education

Marshall Park: noon-2 p.m.

Teacher-sponsored rally to support more sensible state policies in areas such as teacher pay and evaluation, school staffing, class size, testing and other educational issues. MecklenburgACTS.org is a supporting sponsor, and we hope to get a big turnout in order to let state legislators know how serious their voters are about improving the conditions in which our state’s teachers work, and our state’s children learn. We will have a “testing section” at the rally that specifically addresses testing.

April 10, 22 and 23

MeckEd Advocacy Training

April 10, 8-9:30 a.m. in Center City

April 22, 9-10 a.m. at Morrison YMCA

April 23, 10-11 a.m. in Cornelius

MeckEd-sponsored advocacy training sessions focused on how to encourage state legislators to raise average teacher pay in North Carolina. For more information, click here. They have also posted an online advocacy toolkit.

The voices of parents and families matter. For an inspiring story on how parent advocacy made a difference in New York, helping to end a program that would have been a significant intrusion on student privacy, see “Parent power wins! NY severs its relationship with InBloom.”