Administering the PARCC test takes 13 or 14 hours, not counting the two or three hours that have to be spent getting students familiar with the test.

Parents and educators throughout the state continue to voice their displeasure with the new standardized assessment test for students.

From Winnetka to Eureka, educators and the parents of school-age children are balking at the requirements of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers.

Claims that children are being treated like guinea pigs and anger at the amount of time the PARCC test is taking away from instruction – nearly double that of the former Illinois Scholastic Achievement Test – have triggered calls for reform and many parents to tell their child simply to refuse to take the exam.

Bob Bardswell, superintendent of Eureka Community Unit School District 140, estimated that between 20 and 25 percent of his district’s students have refused to take the exam.

“I think people have had their children refuse for a variety of reasons. Some have concern over government’s overreach,” Bardswell said. “Others question PARCC and whether it’s the appropriate test. Still others feel testing should be more of a local concern than a federal concern.”

Bardswell echoes those sentiments personally, feeling that PARCC testing decisions should be left up to individual districts.

“We already assess students to national standards,” Bardswell said, noting his district does MAP testing. “(PARCC) is taking a lot of time away.”

Administering the PARCC test takes 13 or 14 hours, not counting the two or three hours that have to be spent familiarizing students with the test. Because the test needs to be taken via computer, PARCC will take up school computer labs for six weeks, prohibiting students from using the centers for homework or extra help.

Some parents and educators question why Illinois is still behind the PARCC testing when so many other states have bailed on the assessment tool. In 2010, when the test was first introduced as the national standard for assessment, 26 states were on board. However, in the five years since then, 16 of those states have walked away from the test.

Chicago Public Schools had chosen to not give the test to the vast majority of its students, but then caved to pressure from state and federal school officials when they threatened withholding education funding. CPS had planned to administer the test to only 10 percent of its students as a trial.

The Chicago Teachers Union said the test will disrupt the lives of students, handcuff classroom educators and hold the sword of disinvestment over children and communities who need resources the most.

“This has the potential to blow up and be a tremendous failure because CPS itself has said the district may not be able to handle a proper roll-out at this time due to technical issues and frustration among students, teachers and administrators over administering the test properly,” said CTU President Karen Lewis. “But instead of understanding those issues, the state and the feds decided to threaten to withhold resources from a district that’s one of the most poorly resourced in the nation.”

PARCC officials note that 2 million students in 10 states have taken the test thus far.

According to the PARCC website, the test “will allow parents and educators to see how children are progressing in school and whether they are on track for post-secondary success. The PARCC assessment also provides teachers with the ability to identify students who may be falling behind and need extra help.”

A Winnetka grandparent, Blakely Bundy, who is also a member of the advisory board for Defending the Early Years, an agency that supports and nurtures the rights and needs of young children, noted that the test is pointless

“As parents, students and teachers never see the test results, they have no diagnostic or instructional value,” Bundy said.

Trisha Kocanda, superintendent of Winnetka School District 36, wrote a letter to parents expressing her displeasure with the test.

“We recognize the need for assessments and accountability,” Kocanda said. “District 36 is committed to complying with state mandates, including the PARCC. However, we believe that this test continues the over-emphasis on standardized assessments as evaluation tools for students and schools. Our concerns are not unique.”