Testing Resistance & Reform News: November 3 – 9, 2021

The pandemic has accelerated a growing national recognition that standardized tests are both a poor way to measure academic progress and a contributor to social inequality.  In higher education, where academic leaders rely on evidence and institutional missions to determine policy, emphasis on the ACT/SAT and GRE to make admissions decisions has been cut back significantly.  In the K-12 arena, however, politics and ideology are keeping failed policies in place.  Assessment reformers — including teachers, parents and community activists –need to ratchet up the political pressure to overcome this inertia.

National The Push for New Equity Measures in Education
https://www.future-ed.org/changing-the-narrative-the-push-for-new-equity-measures-in-education/

Florida Governor’s Proposal to Revise Testing Requirements Draws Mixed Reactions
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/move-end-standardized-testing-high-schools-draws-both-praise-concern-n1282657

Illinois Test Scores Are Not the Only Measure of COVID Impacts on Education
https://news.yahoo.com/latest-school-report-card-shows-170732000.html

Kentucky Test Scores Reflect Pain of Pandemic
https://news.yahoo.com/act-scores-reflect-strain-pandemic-091600181.html

Louisiana Banning Time-Wasting Standardized Exams Would Help Teachers Combat “Learning Loss”
https://deutsch29.wordpress.com/2021/11/07/what-it-would-take-for-me-to-seriously-confront-pandemic-learning-loss/

Maine Standardized Testing Is a Waste of Time and Money
https://www.pressherald.com/2021/11/03/letter-to-the-editor-being-a-good-test-taker/

Montana Super Pilots Local Progress Monitoring Assessments in Place of Year-End Big Test
https://www.kulr8.com/news/state-superintendent-introduces-new-student-testing-pilot-program/article_5ef21490-389d-11ec-aa3a-ff69bde96216.html

New York Many Fewer Students Took Pandemic Year Standardized Tests, So What Do Results Really Mean?
https://www.newsday.com/long-island/education/state-test-results-grades-3-8-1.50403688

Pennsylvania It’s Time to Abolish Standardized Tests
https://lancasteronline.com/opinion/columnists/it-s-time-to-abolish-standardized-tests-column/article_657671e4-3d7f-11ec-b605-f79774c070f9.html

Wisconsin Pandemic Impact on Test Scores Is Not Surprising
https://www.kenoshanews.com/news/local/western-kenosha-county-school-districts-see-pandemics-impact-on-some-standardized-test-scores/article_3d9b4020-7e0c-51fc-8531-df6cda7a15df.html

University Admission ACT/SAT-Optional Yields More Student Diversity, Less Testing Company Revenue
https://news.yahoo.com/test-optional-students-standardized-tests-183650978.html
University Admissions Tests Are Not Truly Optional When The Are Tied to Financial Aid
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/11/08/admissions-tests-arent-optional-so-long-theyre-tied-financial-aid/

Worth Reading Don’t Double Down on Broken Assessment Systems
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/why-standardized-tests-should-assess-students-not-schools/ar-AAQbZOu?ocid=BingNewsSearch

Bob Schaeffer, Executive Director
FairTest: National Center for Fair & Open Testing
office-   (239) 395-6773    mobile-  (239) 699-0468
web-     https://fairtest.org
email-  bobschaeffer@fairtest.org