A new report from a national nonprofit draws attention to the lack of new, statewide reading and math exams in Iowa classrooms.

A vendor is currently appealing the state's selection of American Institutes for Research as Iowa's new testing contractor, which would replace the Iowa Assessments used today. An administrative law judge is expected to issue a decision.

"Our state (Every Student Succeeds Act) plan is in jeopardy" without a new state accountability exam that reflects what students are learning, Iowa Department of Education spokeswoman Staci Hupp told the Register.

"We share the concern that was raised about the uncertainty around the statewide assessment," Hupp said.

Bellwether Education Partners reviewed 34 state plans submitted to the U.S. Department of Education this fall in order to comply with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act.

The new law, which replaces No Child Left Behind, returned more local control to states. Each state submitted a customized plan for how it will improve K-12 educational achievement.

"Iowa's plan suffers from some uncertainty around its new assessments," the report says. "The state's accountability and support system depends heavily on having reliable (test) data as its foundation."

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The analysis of Iowa's ESSA plan was released Tuesday. The report ranked the lack of new exams as the state's weakest area, with 2 out of 5 points.

Iowa has not yet implemented new accountability tests amid a slow-moving political battle over which exams to use.

In 2014 a state task force recommended a new exam, but it was never funded. This spring, lawmakers passed a law sending the exam back out to bid. Plans called for rolling new tests out in the spring of 2019.

The state education department recently requested $8 million to fund the new tests, Hupp said.

"It's very important that this work moves forward," she said.

The Bellwether group reviewed state plans in nine categories; Iowa's highest, with a possible 4 out of 5 points, was for its goals, indicators of success and efforts toward continuous improvement.

The report also commends two unique ways the state is measuring schools; through a student survey that gauges their experiences, and measures of student success after high school.

Both indicators bring special focus to student experiences — within school and after graduation — which come as teachers and parents clamor for ways to measure schools beyond math and reading tests.

"Other states should look to Iowa's plan as an example of how to put forward a clear vision, match it with aligned goals, and support it with activities designed to achieve those goals," the report says.



