Assessment

News in Brief: A State Capitals Roundup

March 08, 2000 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Louisiana Parents Sue To Block State’s Use Of Test Scores To Promote or Retain Students

A New Orleans parents’ group sued the state of Louisiana last week in an effort to prevent officials from using a new exam to determine whether 4th and 8th graders should be promoted to the next grade.

“Children have not been adequately prepared for tests with such harsh consequences, and don’t have a fair opportunity,” said William P. Quigley, a lawyer for the group, Parents for Educational Justice.

The group does not oppose having the test administered, but opposes how it will be used, said Mr. Quigley, the academic dean at Loyola University’s law school in New Orleans, where the case was filed in federal court.

Although the test was given last year, this year it will be used for the first time to determine whether 4th and 8th graders proceed to the next grade. Students who fail during testing this month will be offered free summer school and a retest in July. The state education department projects that 30 percent of the 120,000 students taking the exam will fail the first time, and that 15 percent to 20 percent of all test-takers will be held back after a second try.

Cecil J. Picard, Louisiana’s state superintendent of education, called the lawsuit counterproductive. “The test is not punitive,” he said. “The punishment is promoting kids year after year before they’re ready.”

—Erik W. Robelen


Democratic Legislator Enters Florida Chief’s Race

Florida state Rep. James Bush III formally announced his candidacy for state education commissioner last month, saying he would work to dismantle the state’s new voucher law.

The former teacher, who has represented a Miami district in the legislature since 1992, is the first Democrat to enter the race. The state’s Republican leadership has thrown its support behind Charlie Crist, a former state senator known for his support of tough-on-crime initiatives.

The position is being vacated by Tom Gallagher, who is running for the U.S. Senate and will leave his Cabinet post in January.

Whoever is elected education commissioner in November will be guaranteed only a two-year term, because the position will shift to a gubernatorially appointed post after the 2002 elections.

Mr. Bush—who is no relation to Gov. Jeb Bush—is barred from seeking re- election to the legislature this year because of a state term limit that prohibits legislators from serving more than eight years in office.

—Jessica L. Sandham

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the March 08, 2000 edition of Education Week as News in Brief: A State Capitals Roundup

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Assessment The 5 Burning Questions for Districts on Grading Reforms
As districts rethink grading policies, they consider the purpose of grades and how to make them more reliable measures of learning.
5 min read
Grading reform lead art
Illustration by Laura Baker/Education Week with E+ and iStock/Getty
Assessment As They Revamp Grading, Districts Try to Improve Consistency, Prevent Inflation
Districts have embraced bold changes to make grading systems more consistent, but some say they've inflated grades and sent mixed signals.
10 min read
Close crop of a teacher's hands grading a stack of papers with a red marker.
E+
Assessment Opinion What's the Best Way to Grade Students? Teachers Weigh In
There are many ways to make grading a better, more productive experience for students. Here are a few.
14 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Assessment Spotlight Spotlight on Assessment
This Spotlight will help you evaluate effective ways to offer students feedback, learn how to improve assessments for ELs, and more.