States join together to create national academic tests
Two big coalitions of states, one spearheaded by Washington state, are competing for federal dollars to create a series of new national academic tests.
The Associated Press
Information
SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium:www.k12.wa.us/SMARTER/default.aspx
Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers: www.fldoe.org/parcc/
Two big coalitions of states are competing for federal dollars to create a series of new national academic tests.
In the current system, every state gives a different test. In some, passing the exam is a high-school graduation requirement.
The federal government has said it will award up to two grants of up to $160 million to create a testing system based on the proposed new national academic standards in language arts and mathematics.
Washington state is submitting the application on behalf of a group of 31 states calling itself the SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium.
Florida is submitting an application on behalf of 26 states in the Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers.
Each coalition has a core group and a bigger collection of states supporting the idea. Some states support both groups. The proposals have many similarities and the coalitions are working together on some parts.
A third organization has expressed interest in a separate grant to create just a high-school test.
The Washington coalition's proposal describes testing different from what's used in most states:
• Testing would be online and given at least twice a year to help track student progress.
• Exams would adapt to measure each student's abilities. That's pricey, cutting-edge technology most
