June 20, 2016 
Important Update on the Implementation of
Testing Reduction Portion of SB 364

The Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) sent the following e-mail to school systems this morning containing important information about the implementation of testing portion of SB 364.  This bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Deal in early May, reduces the amount of state-mandated tests and decreases the emphasis of testing on teacher and leader evaluations.

The changes outlined below will go into effect on July 1 unless otherwise noted in the e-mail.
Colleagues,
 
We are writing to provide you information regarding Senate Bill 364 (SB 364) that was passed by the Georgia General Assembly during its 2016 session and signed into law by Governor Deal  in May 2016.  While this law has many facets, what we wish to provide you in this message is information that relates directly to Georgia's state-mandated student assessment program.
 
SB 364 reduces the amount of testing that will be conducted through the Georgia Milestones Assessment System and the Georgia Alternate Assessment (GAA) beginning with the 2016-2017 school year.  English Language Arts and Mathematics will continue to be assessed in grades 3 - 8 and high school.  The content areas of Science and Social Studies will be assessed in grades 5 and 8 only; while high school students will continue to be assessed in Biology, Physical Science, U.S. History, and Economics as in past years.  For our students in elementary and middle schools this action reduces the number of Georgia Milestones test sections taken in grades 3, 4, 6, and 7 from nine to five.  In light of this reduction in testing, Student Growth Percentiles (SGPs) will not be calculated for Science and Social Studies beginning in 2016-2017 (given there are no prior assessments).
 
The law also provides that a "research-based formative assessment with a summative component" be administered in grades 1 and 2 in the areas of English Language Arts/Reading and Mathematics.  GaDOE is currently exploring options in this regard for possible initial implementation in 2017-2018.  In the meantime, and if your district has an interest, please be reminded that the Georgia Online Formative Assessment Resource (GOFAR) contains both test items and benchmarks for grades 1 and 2.
 
SB 364 also directs the State Board of Education to "study and adopt policies beginning with the 2017-2018 school year that will move the end of grade [EOG] and end of course [EOC] assessment testing windows as close to the end of the school year or semester as possible."  It is important to note the explicit mention of the 2017-2018 school year; the state testing windows for 2016-2017 will not change from the published dates that are posted at:  http://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Assessment/Pages/Information-For-Educators.aspx.  Requests for extension of the Spring 2017 EOG calendar beyond May 5, 2017 cannot be approved.  Relative to the EOC state testing calendar, both the Winter and Spring EOC windows already meet the expectation contained in SB 364.  We welcome any thoughts you may wish to share on this topic.
 
In closing, thank you for all that you do to provide your schools and students the support they need throughout the school year.  We appreciate your efforts.  Enjoy your summer!
 
- Tony
__________
 
Anthony (Tony) Eitel
Director for Assessment
Assessment & Accountability
Georgia Department of Education
1554 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Drive, SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
(404) 656-0478 (Voice)
(800) 634-4106 (Voice - Toll Free)
(770) 359-1378 (Fax)
aeitel@doe.k12.ga.us
 
"Educating Georgia's Future"
Margaret Ciccarelli
Director of Legislative Affairs
Josh Stephens
Legislative Policy Analyst
STAY CONNECTED: