Test Boycott Puts Seattle Teachers in National Spotlight

Seattle educators press strategic critique

Since a group of Seattle high school teachers decided to boycott administration of a computerized exam in December, their protest has been embraced by opponents of high-stakes testing as a call to nationwide action.

Teachers at Garfield High School, however, portray their protest as narrowly focused against one particular test used by their district—the Measures of Academic Progress, or MAP—not against assessments in general, high-stakes or otherwise.

"We are not troublemakers nor do we want to impede the high functioning of our school," the teachers wrote in a Dec. 21 statement . "We are professionals who care deeply about our students and cannot continue to participate in a practice that harms our...