Dive Brief:
- The Florida Standards Assessment, which is Common Core-aligned, may be on its way out in the Sunshine State following a Senate panel's vote to give districts more choice over their annual testing protocols.
- The bill, SB 1360, would allow the use of tests like the ACT or SAT in lieu of the Florida Standards Assessment.
- State Education Commissioner Pam Stewart, however, has expressed concern over whether college admission tests are in line with state standards, according to 10News.com.
Dive Insight:
More states are increasingly opting to use the SAT or ACT for standardized exams and federal accountability. Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, and New Hampshire can use the SAT, and Arkansas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming can use the ACT, with 10 more states having expressed interest in using either test.
Still, the move away from Common Core-aligned standards concerns some testing experts. Those worries stem from the fact that tests like the SAT and ACT are designed to predict a student's college success, not their college readiness. Unlike the SAT and ACT, most current standardized tests are based on mastery of academic standards.
Districts need to remember that the specific provision of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) that regulates federal accountability still, at this point, has no hard implementation plan. Caution should be exercised before scrapping one plan for another, especially until exact federal guidance has been issued.
Furthermore, tests like the ACT and SAT are meant to be used for the purpose for which they were designed. Otherwise, their results are open to valid criticism over their accuracy.