Georgia’s school superintendent often labors under the media and public radar. That’s why it’s important to monitor what he and the state Board of Education are doing when it affects educational reform and progress. Student testing – or rather, too much of it— has been a hot-button issue so Superintendent Richard Woods issued a recommendation this week with wide-ranging ramifications. He is supporting a Board rule that would provide the opportunity to eliminate up to five high-stakes tests for high school students.
State Board of Education Rule 160-3-1.-07 is now officially posted for public comment. With the exception of three courses, Woods explains, it would exempt students from taking the end-of-course test for a core subject course if he or she earns a post-secondary credit in that course. The superintendent elaborates:
“This would solve a problem that’s been brought to us many times by parents and educators in the field: students taking college courses through Move On When Ready/dual enrollment are essentially tested on a class they didn’t take. “If approved, this rule would be another step toward a responsible, common-sense approach to accountability. It would end duplicative testing – in other words, students having to take a college-level final exam AND a Milestones test.” And, Woods concluded, “it would provide the opportunity to eliminate up to five high-stakes tests for students.”
