• If it is your goal to see our teachers stressed out to the max: you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to take the heart and passion out of teaching: you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to turn our kids into machines with no possibility to be inspired: you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to tear apart families with the stress of homework and extra tutoring that take away from family time all in the name of preparing for these tests: you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to prove to yourselves that our students are the best with ridiculous testing that has no validity or true measure of anything...you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to torture everyone in the system with teacher pay directly linked with student test results: you are succeeding! • If it is your goal to keep our teachers on edge by changing their goals and schedules and forcing them to change their lesson plans throughout the year to meet these demands: you are succeeding! Is the message we are trying to send clear enough? You are destroying everything good about teaching and learning! The heart of education is dying. The best teachers are hanging on for dear life and many are choosing to leave because they are just fed up with the system. Parents and children are unable to have quality home life because they are in a mad race to complete all of the homework tasks assigned and completely terrified all year of the inevitable testing which is consuming months of teaching the tests and taking up precious learning time! After school activities should be enhancing the children's lives, not enslaving them to their education. The school system has already practically eliminated all of the arts, recess, music, and other enrichments due to "lack of funding.". They should be enjoying sports, friendships, hobbies and family life, not doing more school work! • We parents serve on PTAs and volunteer during and after school. • We donate money and time to help our teachers improve their learning environments. • We raise money in addition to the taxes we already pay because our school doesn't have enough to purchase basic supplies and equipment and make improvements to the school. • We work side by side with the administration and other parents trying to raise money for our school in an effort to make it the best it can possibly be. • We believe our system is completely out of control and that whoever is making the decisions is either not well informed or knowledgeable about the education system or simply does not care! • We believe that the powers that be are completely out of touch with the reality of schools and their barriers, processes and challenges as well as the financial burdens and lack of time to complete all requirements. We need the madness to stop. Our teachers, parents, students, and administration need a break! We encourage each of you to visit at least two schools for a minimum of 45 minutes and meet with teachers, administrations, parents, and students to understand the issues better, to begin to have an open dialog with the people directly impacted, so that you can get a real life perspective and start to understand our plight. • How is it that students and parents were told they would be taking an online writing exam (typed) this year, yet there were no plans, money or time to teach them how to type properly? How is it that a timed writing test can be given to students that have rudimentary typing skills (more likely thumb only texting skills)? • How is it that our schools with their minimal funding and overcrowding can be expected to prepare and test all of their students with insufficient computer labs? • How is it that you expect to inspire brilliance and forward thinking and innovation when you are twisting the learning to the point of absurd stupidity. The amount of time it is taking to teach our children the ridicuous processes/requirements of the lessons could be better spent giving the extra time towards creativity in the classroom which is what really engages the students. If you treat them like robots, they will become robots. • The people across the nation are standing up and demanding a change! What are you planning to do yourself to serve the people that have put you in your positions? Do you care? We want to know what you are prepared to do to find new answers that make sense. We need change!

I believe Lake Shore High School had better productivity when we had eighty minutes with our teachers. It gave them more time to elaborate and teach instead of rushing us out of the door in forty minutes, and giving the rest of the lesson for homework and learning the topics unable to be covered by ourselves.

As a female student at Lake Shore high school, I have many friends that have no knowledge of self defense and may get very hurt if they were attacked. Self defense is an important lesson that would make students much less vulnerable. Especially in today's society, college can be dangerous for some young adults with no street knowledge.

I believe if you are working hard in a school sport everyday then there's no reason to have to be involved in gym class. The exercise during the practice or game of the sport should count towards the physical activity of the required amount of gym class.

Mr. Stumpf is one of the most talented and dedicated teachers at the Londonderry Middle School. He inspires our children and encourages and promotes their creativity. He boosts their confidence and is concerned about developing the whole child. Whether in the classroom or out on the field, Mr. Stumpf is a positive male role model. He has made a lasting impact on a generation of our children. It is essential that this community work hard to retain such a powerful force in our school rather than let him go in the district's planned "reduction in force."

A Student Aid Bill of Rights 1. Every student should have access to quality, affordable education and colleges and universities should find new ways to reduce costs, accelerate learning and help students earn degrees and certificates. 2. Every student should be able to easily access the resources needed to help pay for college, including scholarships that keeps pace with educational costs. 3. Every student who borrows a student loan should be able to choose a repayment plan that allows them to afford their monthly payments. (For example: Student Loan Refinancing, Income Based Repayment and Pay As You Earn) 4. Every student who borrows a student loan should have the right to high-quality customer service, including timely and reliable information about their loans and fair treatment if they face challenges repaying their loans.

Our school has felt the negative impacts of teaching to the test. New York State Tests take away valuable time in the classroom from creative learning and stimulating projects. Now, Governor Cuomo wants to make these oppressive tests count even more toward a teacher's evaluation, worsening the problem. As students, it is our responsibility to speak out against this injustice because this is our education and our future.

The Governor's Opportunity Agenda does not support our public schools. We need a budget that helps teachers do their jobs. We are calling on legislators to approve a $2.2 billion state aid increase, end the GAP Elimination Adjustment; make good on districts’ prior-year claims; invest in statewide universal pre-kindergarten; embrace community schools; reduce class sizes; and reject any attempt to increase the impact of state standardized testing.

It's time for Newsday to be accountable for their biased reporting and get the real facts about teaching in Public Schools from the people who are in these classrooms everyday. They have no clue what it's like to be a teacher in today's classroom.

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The student council holds beliefs that are completely contrary to their positions. Their actions and subsequent apology are proof they do not possess the qualities required for the position.

I am starting this petition because I believe that the law makers that represent me need to know that what is happening to public schools is destroying our students' education. These young citizens deserve a fully funded education. We cannot give them the best possible experience if we are not supported by our government. It has to start with our local representatives. Please help!