Ward Melville Students Organize Protest in Opposition to Common Core

While the top brass of education assemble with local lawmakers, parents and administrators in the auditorium of Ward Melville high school a student group will voice their opposition during a protest taking place outside of the school Tuesday night.

Tom Reznick, a junior at Ward Melville said he is tired of the constant talk of tests and what he describes as a prison environment. He and a group of students plan to picket outside of the school where NYS Commissioner of Education John King will begin his first of four education forums being held in New York. A total of 36 pre-determined speakers will have a chance to address King at the forum.

“For the past few months I have been looking into education in general and what we consider to be traditional schooling is based on a very archaic model to make students into obedient soldiers,” said Reznick. “We are in a different time now."

Patricia Moore, a 2010 Ward Melville graduate plans on attending the rally. She believes that students want to see the education system work and are turning out in numbers at events like these.

"We believe that there are other ways to foster success in a district, however finding and applying these methods requires a dialogue on both sides," said Moore. "Consider it a meeting of the minds, where students and alumni can have an open dialogue with policy makers and talk about what has worked for us and what hasn't. Tomorrow's events unfortunately highlight that we're quite far from having this kind of discussion, but I think we can get there by making it clear that we want the education system to work."

In one of Reznick’s classes, he estimates a reference to the Regents exam is made every two minutes.

“They mandate high stakes testing. It’s just terrible. Class sizes are up. I feel I have an obligation to speak out,” he said.

The protest is being held from 5:45-8:15 p.m.in the parking lot outside of the school auditorium. Reznick estimates 50 people will be coming to join in the protest but said as any as 400 may show up. His announcement on Patch has garnered 591 shares on Facebook. 

“We will have megaphones and picket signs showing our opposition to the polices that have been put in place.”

Reznick, not a member of student government, wishes more students would take a stand in the future of education.

“It’s crazy that more students aren’t involved,” he said. “There is no organized voice. I want to see students speaking out."