New York state has been dating PARCC for several years now, but it sent signals this week that it’s not ready to plan a wedding.
The Empire State issued a request for proposals for computer-based tests in math and English/language arts for the spring of 2017. While this was reported by some news media as a sign that computer-based tests are hovering on the horizon, it can also be seen as a step backward from choosing PARCC as its statewide tests.
Chalkbeat reports that the five-year contract would begin in July, six months before New York’s current assessment contract with Pearson expires.
New York has been putting off a decision about whether to move to the PARCC tests, opting instead to stay with the Pearson-designed common-core assessments it’s been using since 2013.
Although it’s not entirely impossible at this point for the state to choose PARCC for 2015-16—especially if it’s underwhelmed by the bids it receives from vendors in response to its new solicitation—that possibility seems increasingly unlikely.
If you’ve been watching the dust settle on the 2014-15 assessment landscape, you know that all the states have finally decided what English/language arts and math tests they’re using this year. In case you missed it when we updated that landscape recently, here’s EdWeek’s map of all the states’ 2014-15 assessment plans in math and English/language arts.
The static version, shown here, doesn’t offer you all the detail that the interactive version does. For the interactive version, click here.
