The City County Observer is happy to accept letters to the Editor. Letters will typically be printed on Sundays and will always appear without editing. To submit a letter to our Editor, please email it to citycountyobserver@live.com.
The following is a letter written by Steven Walker, the Chairman of the Constitution Party of Indiana, and is written in response to a Courier & Press article appearing February 25, 2015 with the online title Ask Principals, administrators about ISTEP opt out. The full article may be found at the following link:
Below is Mr. Walker’s response to the same. This letter was originally submitted to the Courier & Press, and that entity declined to publish. The City County Observer does not endorse any position taken in letters to the Editor. We do believe that no opinion should be shunned and found unworthy of debate.
ISTEP is an Unconstitutional Bribe from U.S. Congress
ISTEP is a federal program with attached federal funding for those states and school districts who participate in its implementation. However, there must be a 95% participation rate of enrolled students in order to receive the federal funding. This is Political Bribery.
The ISTA is very concerned about the loss of this “Bribery Money†to the point they issue orders to the school districts not to let the teachers inform the parents of their right to “opt out†of ISTEP for their children. Local districts have even threatened teachers with “firing†if they even discuss “opt out†with the parents. Rather, they are informed to have the subject discussed with administrative personnel. This is unconstitutional.
Where is the allegiance of the administration? Is it to the children, whom they are assumed to be serving, or is it to the federal funding (bribes) of ISTEP and their own jobs? Apparently, the allegiance of the ISTA and local administrators belong to their own jobs and the federal bribes. The ISTEP bribe is only one of a multitude of “Bribery Acts†by the U.S. Congress to usurp the freedoms of American citizens and take unconstitutional authority over legal Americans. The powers of the Constitution belong to the citizens of America, not Federal Government. The parents of the children have the right to make decisions for the education and welfare of their children. That right cannot be dictated by government, school districts or “the village.â€
Whether they are the local school districts throughout Indiana, Indiana State Teachers Association, Indiana State Legislature or the Governor, federal bribes must not be taken into consideration for policies or law making by any of them. If it comes with attached strings such as ISTEP, then it must be rejected by all government and educational officials in the magnificent state of Indiana. The Constitutional rights of all Hoosiers, especially our children must come first, not the illusory benefits of the bribe.
The Federal Bribery Acts are not only a detriment to America, they are also unconstitutional. They must be rejected. Carrots enslave the horse to its master.
Steven Walker, US Navy Retired
Commandant: National Veterans Coalition
Chairman: Constitution Party of Indiana
Commander: National Veterans Coalition of Indiana
email: nvc.indiana@yahoo.com
phone: 812-455-6406
pfft.
What is that? If you have a comment make it. I don’t know much about ISTEP but if you can opt out, it must not be that important. Besides what right do parents have to know about what schools are doing to their children.
I have had teachers describe stress and anxiety that elementary school students experience related to this test. The school has no choice but to tell the children repeatedly how important their scores are to the school. I don’t think teachers should have to send a 4th grader to the nurse, because they are having a panic attack. These tests completely stress out everyone involved. What some advocate is that parents withdraw their kids from the school the week before the test for homeschooling and then put the kids back in the school after the testing is over. It keeps the family from having to deal with stressed out 9 year olds and the child is not counted towards the requirement that 95% of the kids sit for the test. I don’t think the majority of parents need these scores to understand how their child is doing in school. That sounds like complete crap to me. I thought that was the purpose of the periodic report card.
Or a damned asthma attack because of “the CSO in Your Driveways” that’s a huge medical issue in that old Evansville sectioned mess. And it is beginning to be scored nationally as well. Yep we are scoring it ! What’s up with that? Are you picking on the old infrastructure portion of the inner city?……………………….
Wow. Kids are being sent home because of ‘panic attacks’ caused by a standardized test? Quite a way we’ve fallen from the kids who grew up during The Great Depression and then hit the beaches of Normandy and Tarawa, eh?
Poor little darlings…
What a data off un-ambiguity and preserveness of valuabl experience about unpredicted feelings.
I always suspected standards were pretty low in the Navy.
Politics has no business in Education. Past 5-6 years proves that with our last two Governors.
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