The flaws of state testing mentioned in my last two posts (here and here) have not gone unnoticed by lawmakers. Texas Rep. Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs) announced the Teaching Over Testing Act Feb. 1, 2017, to decentralize the impact of standardized testing in the classroom.
Also known as House Bill 1333, the act offers four main points of reform by allowing school districts to use alternative test providers, reducing the number of tests, removing STAAR scores from teacher evaluations and reducing the weight of STAAR scores in schools’ A-F ratings.
This bill is a step in the right direction for Texas education. The reign of standardized tests must come to an end to reinstate the true purpose of learning, which is to grow intellectually and think critically, not to score sufficiently on a cheap exam.
