Despite pandemic, state standardized tests return

Public school students across the state, in the midst of a pandemic, were spared having to take annual standardized tests last spring.

It was a one-time pass.

A memo from the state to school superintendents issued on Wednesday said it anticipates administering a Smarter Balanced Assessment in the spring of 2021.

“Having results in 2020-21 will allow us to monitor long term trends and evaluate the full impact of the pandemic on student achievement and growth,” said the memo from Ajit Gopalakrishnan, chief performance officer for the state Department of Education.

It is also hoped the test will help the state gather data on whatever negative impact the pandemic had on student learning.

In September, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos signaled to state education officials that she did not anticipate her office would issue a waiver of the testing requirement as it did in the last school year.

Last spring, schools were abruptly shut down in midMarch, leaving many students at home without technology or connectivity to access remote learning.

Still, Gopalakrishnan said in his memo that the assessment won’t be synonymous with school and district accountability. He said the department will seek federal approval not to count the test as it normally does toward determining which schools and districts are struggling.

The guidance on giving the test also applies to the Connecticut SAT which is given to high school juniors as a state assessment in the spring.

The assessments, which are given via computers, can be offered remotely to students learning from home on devices, the state said.

Hearst Connecticut Media file photo Hart Magnet School students, including Rhea Wadhwa, take a practice SBAC test in 2015.