Education Secretary Betsy DeVos recently issued guidance on how schools should be handling the COVID-19 crisis and spoke on the real possibility that the Department of Education would grant waivers from federally mandated testing requirements.
From Washington Post:
“In cases where a school has been closed for a period of time, the assessment results still provide useful information about where individual students and groups of students will need support in the following school year,” the guidance says.
“However, due to the unique circumstances that may arise as a result of COVID-19, such as a school closing during the entire testing window, it may not be feasible for a state to administer some or all of its assessments, in which case the department would consider a targeted one-year waiver of the assessment requirements for those schools impacted by the extraordinary circumstances.”
While states and districts across the country have been working to reduce the number of tests students take in general, with the spread of coronavirus and mandated school closings, it’s very up in the air what will happen with spring standardized testing. States such as Ohio and Washington have suggested that mandated state tests will not occur this year, with the organizations such as ACT announcing that the test date will move from April 4 out to June 13.
Many have concerns with disruptions due to the mandated closures and the idea of whether students had an adequate opportunity to learn before the tests are administered. While Governor Hogan announced that Maryland schools would close from March 16 through March 27 with the possibility of extension, there has not been any statement on how Spring standardized testing in Maryland will be handled.
*This will be updated as new information on standardized testing becomes available*
