by James C. Sherlock
Dungeness School House
HB 2094, Public schools; Standards of Learning assessments poses a risk that Virginia parents will be left without an objective measure of their children’s progress in school. That is likely a risk unforeseen by its patrons.
The bill has been introduced by Del. Israel O’Quinn, R-Bristol, with support from co-patrons Del. Jeff Campbell, R-Marion, Del. Terry Kilgore, R-Gate City, Del. Will Wampler, R-Abingdon, and Sen. Todd E. Pillion, R-Abingdon.
I hope that they will consider redrafting the bill to eliminate this risk.
Current Virginia law
“The Standards of Learning assessments administered to students in all grades three through eight shall meet but not exceed (a) reading and mathematics in grades three and four; (b) reading, mathematics, and science in grade five; (c) reading and mathematics in grades six and seven; (d) reading, writing, and mathematics in grade eight; (e) science after the student receives instruction in the grade six science, life science, and physical science Standards of Learning and before the student completes grade eight; and (f) Virginia Studies and Civics and Economics once each at the grade levels deemed appropriate by each local school board.”
HB 2094 – Currently Proposed Revision
“The Standards of Learning assessments administered to students in all grades three through eight shall meet but not exceed the minimum requirements established by the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESSA) of 1965, P.L. 89-10, as amended.”
Current federal testing requirements under ESSA
Under ESSA as currently written, states must test students in reading and math once a year, in grades 3 through 8, as well as once in high school. They must also test kids in science once in grade school, middle school, and high school.
The risk
The issue I see with HB 2094 is that under the proposed revised wording of the current Virginia law, if the federal ESSA testing requirements are eliminated, SOL testing requirements will automatically be eliminated in Virginia.
That is a possibility because President-elect Biden, following the lead of the educational left and the national teachers unions, has already said he doesn’t favor “high stakes testing.”
If that happens, the change to Virginia law currently proposed in HB 2094 will leave Virginia with no requirement to objectively assess and compare the performance of state schools and individual students.
I suspect that is not the intent of the patrons.
Recommended revision
If the patrons mean for SOLs to be given as currently required by ESSA, they should redraft their proposed change to reflect require in Virginia law testing students:
- in reading and math once a year, in grades 3 through 8, as well as once in high school; and
- in science once in grade school, middle school, and high school.
Again, I don’t think the potential elimination of SOLs is what those lawmakers had in mind with HB 2094, so I hope they will change the language to eliminate the risk.
