New York State Officials Announce There Will Be No Changes to State Exams Until 2019

November 14, 2016

By: Monica Disare
Source: Chalkbeat

Those seeking changes to New York’s standardized tests will have to wait at least two more years, State Education Department officials announced Monday.

The decision, which will affect grades 3-8 English and math exams, was presented by state officials as a chance to allow for stable, annual comparisons between test scores while officials consider a more dramatic shake-up to tests in 2019. But the move is likely to draw ire from parents across the state, roughly 20 percent of whom opted their children out of last year’s the exams in protest, demanding major changes to assessments.

The state considered making larger testing adjustments — including shifting from three-day tests to two — but determined it would not be possible to do so while keeping results reliable, said State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia.

“Our expert analysis determined it would not be feasible to do that and still be able to have meaningful growth comparisons for students, schools or statewide,” Elia said. “We will reexamine shortening the testing days as part of designing the tests for the state’s new learning standards.”

The state made a number of changes to assessments this year in response to parents’ concerns about over-testing, which inspired a robust boycott movement. Last year for the first time, students had unlimited time to take the tests and sat for shortened assessments.

Average scores improved, but the adjustments caused a problem: They precluded an apples-to-apples comparison between years. That meant it was difficult to examine whether students gained knowledge in English and math. In New York City, some leaders ignored the state’s caveats about making comparisons between years and reported the scores as a major victory.

To avoid recreating these problems, officials decided they could not continue making changes over the next two years. Even Chancellor Betty Rosa, who said last year she would opt her own child out of state assessments, expressed her support for leaving the exams unchanged.

“Maintaining the current testing for now will allow us to measure student development over time,” Rosa said.

Leaders of the statewide opt-out movement made it clear last year that the commissioner’s efforts to revamp tests did not satisfy their concerns — and sent that message on Monday.

“As the NYS testing system continues to be in turmoil, keeping tests the same length is essentially a green light for parents to continue opting out and it will fuel the movement to grow,” said Lisa Rudley, a founding member of New York State Allies for Public Education, which helped lead the statewide opt-out movement.

The state teachers union said the decision shows a “disregard” for the concerns of parents and educators. “Despite a fierce outcry against the length of state standardized tests by parents and educators, the State Education Department is punting on the changes needed to move forward. So much for listening,” the statement read, urging the department to reconsider its decision.

Such resistance could become even more difficult in the coming years, since the new federal education law requires 95 percent of students to take state tests, with consequences to be determined by the states themselves. Regent Roger Tilles, who represents opt-out hotbed Long Island, brought up this challenge at the Board of Regents meeting.

“I can almost assure that without some real changes, the parents’ group won’t necessarily understand [the lack of changes],” Tilles said. “We should anticipate at least a couple more years of difficulty in getting to the 95 percent.”

Editor’s Note: After sending a press release on Monday stating that state exams in grades 3-8 ELA and math would not be changed in 2017 or 2018, Chancellor Betty Rosa said Tuesday the board is willing to discuss changes in 2018. Education Department spokesperson Emily DeSantis said, “Given the recent events of the past month and our discussions yesterday, we are making no decisions right now about the 2018 assessments.”