Washington state gets test waiver for school kids

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn announced July 6, 2012 that the U.S. Department of Education had granted Washington’s waiver request from Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) requirements. Washington is one of 26 states that have received waivers from ESEA to date.

“This decision is welcome news that gives our state the opportunity to implement bold reforms around standards and accountability,” Dorn said. “It allows state and local educators to decide how to best meet the individual needs of students they serve. Current ESEA law is written in a way that narrowly defines ‘success’ based mainly on standardized test scores.”

While Dorn acknowledged the importance of test scores as a component in ensuring accountability, he stated that getting kids to be career and college ready requires much more. Schools need to be serving their students and communities in areas like school environment and access to rigorous coursework, as well as providing a well-rounded education that will lead to success in a knowledge-based economy.

Full story here.