CHICAGO – American Federation of Teachers President Rhonda Weingarten must be so proud.

“Thought you’d enjoy our Chicago #DayOfAction video of our Holiday caroling to our mayor,” Chicago Teachers Union activist Michelle Gunderson wrote to Weingarten on Twitter the other day.

Gunderson attached a video she produced with fellow union agitator Linda Boyle that plays off the “Deck the Halls” Christmas carol, with a montage of footage from the national union “Day of Action” in Chicago Dec. 9. The video shows the Grinch mocking Christmas as he visits Chicago City Hall, as well as other activists and children the union recruited to protest at the “State of Illinois building.”

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Rhonda retweeted Gunderson’s message, so the union boss obviously approves.

The little diddy goes something like this:

“Deck the halls with lumps of coal, Fa la la la la, la la la la

“See the writing on the wall, Fa la la la la, la la la la

“Neighborhood schools are the treasures, Fa la la, la la la, la la la

“Overtesting is not a measure, Fa la la la la, la la la la

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“See the blazing fire before us, Fa la la la la, la la la la

“Burning standards tests so delights us, Fa la la la la, la la la la

“Follow us in merry measure, Fa la la, la la la, la la la

“Raise your fist and join our chorus, Fa la la la la, la la la la.”

Gunderson and her ilk may have earned themselves an “A” for creativity, but burning standardized tests seems to send the message that the tests don’t matter. They do, both to measure student progress and evaluate teacher effectiveness.

That’s the real issue. Gunderson, Boyle, Weingarten, and other union activists say that poor kids can’t learn and they don’t want public school teachers held accountable for classroom results. They want the public to believe the city’s “neighborhood schools are the treasures,” but as many Chicago families know all too well, the treasure is filled with fool’s gold – decades of promises to improve academics with no results.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Manuel, along with education reform advocates across the United States, understand that schools won’t improve unless educators, administrators, students and district leaders realize that poor kids can indeed learn, and are held accountable for student progress, or a lack thereof. They understand that it’s impossible to measure progress without student assessments.

Standardized tests are critical to assessing and improving student learning – a fact that seems to be lost on these caroling clowns and their boss in Washington, D.C.