Should My Son Opt Out of Testing?

This morning Joel walks in and says, "The walls are naked at our school. Everything is quiet and the grown-ups all look mad . . . or maybe scared. It's hard to tell." "Yeah, it's testing week." "Are you made or scared?" "A little of both," I admit. "But I'm going to try my best to keep from taking it too seriously." Tonight he comes up to me and says, "I don't want to go to bed. Last night I had bad dreams about the test." "What was your dream?" "That I failed it." "So, why is that a big deal?" "Teachers get judged on it." (Apparently he's been listening to Christy and I talking) "And the kids with low scores have to go to extra tutoring. I don't want to stay after school all of next year." So, here's where I'm stuck. I want to opt-out of the test. I want him to avoid the stress and the pressure and everything that goes with it. I would love to pull him out for a week and let him have a full five days of totally authentic learning. And yet . . . I also see the other side. My son loves his teacher. He loves his school. His positive scores will help both of them. He gets how big the test is and when asked about it, he is insistent that he wants to be there. He wants to do well. Although he is pissed-off that the test scores determine his teacher's success, he wants to support her. This is why I understand the opting in and the opting out. It's a complicated issue. Whatever a family decides, there are lasting implications on the children, the school and the community.