The drive to rid New York of the Common Core curriculum hit the streets of White Plains today.
Parents, teachers and students gathered at the steps of the Westchester County Center to show their support for refusing the controversial state tests.
The group says it disagrees with the new statewide curriculum and its implementation. The group is urging other parents to have their kids opt out of the test.
It says Gov. Andrew Cuomo is ignoring their concerns after the state budget passed last week including funding for Common Core.
The teacher evaluation system calls for teacher performance ratings to be tied to student scores on Common Core tests. It will also make it easier for schools to terminate teachers rated as ineffective.
The state teachers union says 250,000 students opted out last year, up from 60,000 the year before.
In a statement, the state education chancellor said, "Those who call for 'opting out' really want New York to 'opt out' of information that can help parents and teachers understand how well students are doing. We cannot go back to ignoring the needs of our children. It's time to stop making noise to protect the adults and start speaking up for students."
State officials say under federal regulations, a school with less than 95 percent of its students participating could lose significant federal funding.
Opponents don't agree and say there there is no mechanism that ties participation to funding.