Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 25, 1994 TAG: 9402250162
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ELIZABETH THIEL STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
The standardized tests that all first-, fourth-, eighth- and 11th-graders now take will be suspended for a year, maybe two, if state Superintendent William Bosher has his way. The sixth-grade Literacy Passport Test, required by state law, would not be included in the freeze.
Bosher said it doesn't make sense to continue spending the $500,000 a year it costs to conduct the standardized tests, until officials rewrite state academic standards. Gov. George Allen has promised to have a package of public-school reform proposals ready by the time the General Assembly convenes again in 1995. The Department of Education will develop new statewide tests to go along with that reform package, Bosher said.
"It's very difficult to continue testing on the old standards, when we're trying to develop new standards," Bosher told the state Board of Education at its monthly meeting Thursday. "I'd rather see us draw a line and save some money on tests while we're developing some standards."
State PTA representatives said they did not know how parents, most of whom rely on standardized tests as the primary gauge for how well or how poorly schools are performing, would react to the plan.
"My gut reaction is that people would not be very receptive to that," said Lillie Ricucci, chairwoman of the state PTA's education committee, "unless they had a pretty strong rationale."
State law requires that the Department of Education have a testing program, with the results reported publicly each year. But the law does not specify that standardized tests must be used as part of that program, Bosher said.
"We're not talking about eliminating testing," Bosher said. "We're talking about a moratorium for a temporary period of time."
State board members, who must approve Bosher's plan when he formally presents it to them within the next couple of months, reacted cautiously.
"It's interesting," said board President James Jones. "I haven't really had a chance to consider or react to it.
"Certainly, I agree with his statement that we need better assessment methods."
The question is whether testing should be halted in the meantime.
"I want to study that question further," he said.
by CNB