Dems Urge Devos To Waive Standardized Testing Next School Year

By Allison Donahue, Michigan Advance

State Sen. Dayna Polehanki (D-Livonia) and State Rep. Lori Stone (D-Warren) introduced a concurrent resolution Wednesday to urge the U.S. Department of Education to waive the federally mandated standardized tests next school year.

In March, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos waived the federal mandate for the remaining assessments this spring, but testing for next fall is still uncertain.

“Our schools are already facing unprecedented challenges in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Placing the burden of standardized testing on the shoulders of our students, who have missed so much time in the classroom is simply unfair,” Stone said. “Now more than ever, it is imperative to support our students and teachers to have as much instructional time as possible with as few disruptions as possible.”

On Tuesday, GOP legislators introduced their “Return to Learn” plan for schools next fall, which included requiring students to take benchmark assessments.

Polehanki and Stone say that safety and health protocols, like social-distancing guidelines or distance-learning, would make administering a test costly and could quadruple the amount of time it takes to test students.

Additionally, internet quality and academic integrity issues make standardized testing from home currently untenable, Stone and Polehanki said in a press release.

Last week, GOP Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp requested a similar waiver.