Dept. of Education Posts Draft Regulations for ESSA’s “Innovative Assessment” Pilot Program
July 6, 2016
The Dept. of Education posted draft regulations for ESSA’s “Innovative Assessment” pilot program, which grants states the flexibility to administer “Innovative Assessments” to a subsect of their schools in place of their exiting statewide assessments. Within five to seven years, seven states will be allowed to pioneer their own assessments, needing to demonstrate consultation with teachers, testing experts, and other qualified authorities. Proposed assessments can be aimed at all grades and subjects, or can focus on subset categories (e.g., high school math assessments). States’ proposals must “produce results comparable to the [existing] statewide assessments” in order to be granted the authority to conduct them. After the pilot has concluded, the Dept. of Education’s Institute for Education Sciences will report on the pilot’s effectiveness, similar to other assessments under Title 1, Part A.