Defenders of test-and-punish policies who claim that assessment reform is limited to progressive coastal states should read this week's stories from places such as Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Utah. The push back against standardized exam overuse and misuse is truly an expanding nationwide movement.
The 2018 school testing season is already on the horizon. That means more local organizing against standardized exam overkill leading to heightened attention by policy-makers to assessment reform. As always, the more grassroots pressure, the better the prospects for meaningful change.
With stories about assessment reform appearing in fully one-third of all U.S. states over just the past week, it is clear that the movement to eliminate standardized exam misuse and overuse continues to accelerate across the country.
Week after week, news stories demonstrate the many ways test-driven schooling is failing students, families, educators and taxpayers. It's no wonder, then, that the assessment reform movement continues to grow across the U.S.
The drumbeat of evidence documenting the damage to educational quality and equity from high-stakes exams is forcing policymakers to reconsider their commitment to testing overuse and misuse. Look for many more assessment reform victories as 2018 state legislative sessions move into high gear.
Happy New Year to the thousands of readers of FairTest's weekly assessment reform news clips. With this first issue of 2018, we want to remind you that previous editions are archived at
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