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Public support for what Harvard Professor Daniel Koretz labels the "Testing Charade" (http://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/T/bo24695545.html) is dropping rapidly around the natio

On this "Giving Tuesday," you can support assessment reform campaigns that generate stories like this week's collection by clicking here:
 

National States Can Soon Pursue "Innovative Assessment" Pilot Program Under NCLB
http://hechingerreport.org/states-will-soon-free-transform-standardized-...
National Many States Set Ridiculously Unachievable Goals Under ESSA
https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2017-11-17/the-every-student-suc...

Florida Schools Seeks Graduation Test Waiver for Students with Classes Disrupted by Hurricane

Week by week, grassroots assessment reform campaigns grow ever stronger, winning more reductions in standardized exam misuse and overuse by states and cities.

States continue to reduce testing overkill -- particularly by rolling back high school exit exam requirements -- as evidence increasingly demonstrates the many flaws of reliance on standardized tests to make high-stakes educational decisions.

National Take Advantage of ESSA Opportunity to Improve Assessments
https://www.districtadministration.com/article/1217-mn

Florida Replace Test-Based Teacher Bonuses with Real Salary Hikes
http://www.gainesville.com/opinion/20171031/editorial-raise-salaries-for...

This is the season when many states issue  "school grades" or "report cards" that are based largely on standardized exam results. As in past years, a string of scoring and data reporting errors reveals how counter-productive this politically motivated process can be. Meanwhile, more jurisdictions are considering eliminating or minimizing their high school graduation testing requirements. That continues a trend in which the number of states with exit exams on the books has been cut in half.

The drumbeat of criticism against high-stakes testing grows ever stronger as more evidence shows that the nation's standardized exam fixation is undermining both educational quality and equity. Nevada is the latest state to retreat from making major school decisions, such as eligibility for a high school diploma, on the basis of test scores.

Parents, educators, students and education activists continue to escalate the fight to replace standardized exam misuse and overuse with better forms of assessment.  Meanwhile, the testing industry provides even more fodder for reform campaigns with more scoring screw-ups and fights over contract awards.

Please help FairTest celebrate "Deb Meier Hero in Education" winners -- Schott Foundation President John Jackson and Mass. Teachers Association President Barbara Madeloni -- by making a contribution in their honor at:
https://fairtest.networkforgood.com/events/3235-fairtest-celebrates-john...

National Overwhelming Percentages of Math, English Teachers Oppose Current Tests
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/teacherbeat/2017/10/teachers_say_state_st...

Many of this week's stories reflect the growing recognition that standardized exam scores do not accurately reflect the realities of student academic achievement or school quality. That's why an ever-increasing number of states and districts are cutting back on the volume of tests and the stakes attached to their results.