A statewide nonpartisan group met in El Paso Wednesday to discuss trying to overhaul the Texas standardized testing system.

The group, called Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessment (TAMSA), believes that high school students should only have to pass two end-of-course exams, Algebra I and English II, in order to graduate, instead of the current 15 end-of-course tests required.

The group also voiced their opinion against a state law requiring end-of-course exams to account for 15 percent of a students grade.

TAMSA Board Director Theresa Trevino told KFOX14 the group is advocating several different things.

"We want the test scores removed from the grades. We want to get rid of the 15 percent rule. We would like to get rid of students having to take all 15 tests in order to be considered for admittance to a university, and we would like to remove the cumulative score, when all of those test scores are added up, if they don't meet standards, they can't get a diploma. We think for kids that have passed the class, to take away their chance for a diploma based on a cumulative score is just cruel," Trevino said. "We've got 25 states in the union that give zero tests for graduation, they don't require it, and those are some of the top performing states in the nation for education."

"Learning in a classroom is better than them being tested all the time, learning how to take a test doesn't teach you anything," Michelle Blumenfeld said.
Blumenfeld has two kids who have taken the standardized tests.
"The critical thinking has gone out the window, andthey're trained to pick A, B, C, or D," she said.

Another issue put forward at the meeting was that of poor students and schools receiving less funding than other schools.

"If a Texan child is poor, lives in a poor neighborhood, more than likely they're in a poor school, a school that's underfunded, there are about a half of dozen suits against the Texas legislature because of unequal funding," said Julio Noboa, a professor at University of Texas at El Paso.
"We have to have shared accountability, we can't just hold teachers, principals, and superintendents accountable, how about holding the legislature accountable, we are underfunded here," Noboa said.

There will be another meeting at 6 p.m Wednesday at Coronado High School.