IN SUPPORT OF AGE-APPROPRIATE ASSESSMENT TO HELP YOUNG LEARNERS GROW

WHEREAS, young children need opportunities to engage in active, age-appropriate, play-based learning, which research shows has important educational and social benefits; and

WHEREAS, expecting young children to know specific facts or show certain skills at specified ages is incompatible with the varied ways that different children develop and learn; and

WHEREAS, years of research demonstrate that the best way to assess young children's learning is through the expertise of teachers who know how to observe and interpret children's activities and behavior; and

WHEREAS, all assessments should help teachers focus on children's natural developmental progressions and variations, and be used to help teachers better support children's learning; and

WHEREAS, standards for early education, including the Common Core State Standards as well as the Common Core-aligned early learning standards, must reflect what decades of research in neuroscience and cognitive and developmental psychology tell us about how young children learn:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers will continue to advocate against the use of standardized tests in prekindergarten through second grade; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will work to address questions about the appropriateness and the implementation of the Common Core standards for young learners by urging the nation's governors and chief state school officers to establish a governance structure that includes early educators to review the appropriateness of the rollout and implementation of the Common Core State Standards and to provide feedback that ensures the standards affecting the early grades are continually improving and are developmentally appropriate for young learners in their content and implementation; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will advocate for the use of additional resources to disseminate information and current research concerning best practices in assessment of young children; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will support state and local affiliates and community partners in urging policymakers and elected officials at the federal, state and local levels to fund appropriate preparation and ongoing supports for educators of our youngest children.