Message from the Superintendent: Updated Information regarding the State Assessments
The New York State Education Department(NYSED) has requested an assessment waiver from the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) because they determined that the Spring 2021 state assessments cannot be safely, equitably, and fairly administered to all students across the State due to the pandemic. A decision from the USDE is pending, however, the following information has been released by the NYSED to assist schools in preparing for the Spring 2021 assessments should the waiver not be granted.
In regards to the Regents exams, the state will be administering the following Regents exams as required by the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The administration of all other Regents exams has been cancelled in June and the administration of all August Regents exams has been cancelled.
For the grade 3-8 English Language Arts and Mathematics assessments schools will be required to administer only session 1, a shift from the standard practice where these assessments are administered in 2 sessions. The testing window for ELA is April 19th-29th and May 3rd-May 14th for mathematics. In addition, only the written component of the Grade 4 and 8 Science Tests will be administered, the performance tests will not be administered.
NYSED has determined that it will not be possible to administer any of this year's assessments remotely, and if they occur, all assessments will be school-based. We will continue to update you as more information becomes available.