Nebraska Bill Would Boost State Tests' Status

Measure seeks to make statewide assessment sole yardstick for NCLB

Less than a year after mandating statewide reading and math tests as an alternative to Nebraska’s unique grassroots assessments, state lawmakers are poised to neuter the district-level tests altogether.

Under a bill working its way through the unicameral state legislature—with overwhelming support from lawmakers—districts could still administer their locally created assessments, but could not use the results for accountability under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Nebraska currently is the only state that does not use statewide standardized tests to meet accountability requirements under the NCLB law. And while the state education department has worked hard to make the home-grown assessments comply with the federal law, that hasn’t happened, said Jim Scheer, a member of the...