MCC, reporting as ordered.
A little background:
My Dad taught fifth grade for over twenty years. He retired from teaching when the burden of paperwork took away so much of his time that he could no longer offer the quality of education that was his standard.
This is my fifth year to homeschool. My oldest son graduated last year, is taking some time off, then plans to attend college next Fall. It took one full year to undo the damage done by a school system that received an Exemplary rating (top score) from the state in several of the past ten years. That was damage done while I attended every meeting available, extensive phone calls, and all the support I could give to the teachers. I was, after all, a teacher's kid. The last two years, I spent every hour of my vacation time in meetings at the school. While the meetings seemed productive and the outcome both measurable and predictable, such was very rarely the case.
So, five years ago, after three years of my oldest son begging to be homeschooled, I quit my full-time job, brought my children home, and continued reading and learning about all things homeschool. Just today, I had to defend my right to homeschool my youngest son in a courtroom. I was successful. The journey for the next six years will not be easy, but is absolutely essential if I want my youngest son to have critical thinking skills. He has his own challenges, but with persistence, he has every opportunity to do almost anything he wants.
There are several public school teachers in my family - all support my decision and my efforts.
Standardized testing as it stands is a thorn that teachers and students must endure to appease bureaucrats. Every other year, I use the ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills) to assess progress. It is not mandatory in my state, but is a tool for my use. It is long, but my funding does not depend on it, nor am I required to teach to it.
Rhonda
edited to add a comment about my Dad and get back on topic