18 April 2012

Dear Friends:

You are receiving this message because you have indicated your support for the New York State Principals' Open Letter Regarding the NYS APPR Legislation (http://www.newyorkprincipals.org/). We thank you for your support and would like to provide you with an update on our recent activities

The Numbers

As of today, over 1,432 principals in New York State signed our letter. This amounts to over 31% of the principals in New York State. Additionally, over 4,860 friends have voiced their support for our positions. Thank you to all who have taken this stand.

We Need Your Opinions!

This year, New York State has substantially increased the amount of time devoted to standardized testing in grades 3 through 8. For example, third graders last year spent a total of 150 minutes over three days on standardized tests in ELA and 100 minutes over two days in math, for a total of 250 minutes or four hours and ten minutes of testing spread over a three week period. This year, third graders will spend 90 minutes a day for three consecutive days in each subject - for a total of nine hours of testing in less than two weeks – more than DOUBLE the testing time in a shortened window.

We are seeking to gather information on the effects that this increase has had or is having upon the students and schools. To that end, we are asking you to take a few minutes of your time to answer some simple questions about what you have observed regarding your students or children.

We have designed two separate surveys to gather information. One survey is for teachers of students in grades 3 through 8 in any public school in New York State. (If you have students in multiple grades, and feel that the experience varies from grade to grade, feel free to fill it out once for each grade that you teach.) Another survey is for parents of students in grades 3 through 8. If you fit into both of these categories, please complete each survey. Note that a separate survey has been sent to randomly selected principals throughout New York State.

We ask the following:

1. Complete the survey(s) based upon your experience this year, Respond no later than Tuesday, May 1, 2012. We will produce a press release with our findings.
2. Forward the survey(s) to any teacher or parent who is involved in the ELA or Math tests in grades 3 through 8. Contact your local parent organizations and enlist their support.

You can access the surveys through the following links:

· Survey for teachers:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/H6DLQY2

· Survey for parents:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CB3MFZP

Thank you for your courage to stand up for our students and schools.

Sean and Carol

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Sean C. Feeney, Ph.D.

Principal

The Wheatley School

11 Bacon Road