A Break through Moment in Education Testing

Sen. Boucher: not since the Connecticut Mastery Test have we seen such movement in the right direction for our students

Hartford, CT – State Senator Toni Boucher (R-Wilton) Ranking Member of the Education Committee released the following statement today re: bipartisan support for senate bill 1095 AAC Student Assessments, which would allow 11th grade students around Connecticut to pass on taking the Smarter Balance Assessment Test and instead take a College entrance exam – for free- aligned with the standards approved by the state board of education.

“By 11th grade most students have a heavy test burden. Juniors in high school could potentially be taking the, the SAT, the ACT and the PSAT and oftentimes a multitude of AP exams. This is not a good time to also add the controversial smarter balanced assessment (SBAC) that recently replaced the Connecticut Mastery Test. For these reasons and due to feedback from teachers, school administrators, legislators and parents, we are proposing a change in state law that will replace this controversial SBAC test with a nationally recognized college readiness assessment.

“One option that fits that description could be the SAT. This is a smarter approach to the state high school testing requirements. Instead of two separate tests, one test can be used to accomplish both the goal of assessing student progress, and also completing the requirements for those students that need the SAT or ACT for college entrance.

“This could also potentially save parents and students the expense of taking the college entrance exams separate from the state mandated high school assessment. Juniors in high school should be focusing on taking their years of learning and applying what they know to the college boards. The new college boards – set to be unveiled by 2016 – will align to the new standards and serve a dual purpose. Simply put this bill makes sense.

“We have a unique opportunity to find common ground and unanimity on both sides of the aisle and also from parents, teachers, teachers’ unions and the leadership of the education committee to support this concept. I look forward in the remaining days of the session to promote the passage of a better way to assess the progress of our students, and streamline the state required testing process.”