LANSING, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Education turned down a plea from Michigan’s Department of Education to halt standardized tests this year.
Michigan education officials had hoped that federally-mandated standardized tests, known as the M-STEP, could be waived this year due to the challenges in education related to the COVID-19 pandemic. But on Tuesday, they were informed that the tests must happen anyways. Some of testing could begin as early as this Monday.
“This is beyond disappointing. It’s shameful,” Casandra Ulbrich, president of the State Board of Education, said in a statement. “USED (the U.S. education department) had an opportunity to do the right thing for the right reasons. Michigan citizens, educators, and parents will get virtually no useful and actionable information from this year’s state tests.” – (Quote courtesy StudentandEducator.org)
It is still uncertain exactly how many Michigan students will take the test. The education publication says it’s likely that many Michigan students who are learning remotely will not take the test, which must be administered in person at a school.
