Assessment

Pennsylvania Stays In Consortia, But Won’t Use Tests

By Catherine Gewertz — August 02, 2013 1 min read
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A few weeks back, the two state consortia developing common-core assessments were getting word from Pennsylvania officials that the state planned to withdraw.

Now the Keystone State has clarified that it will remain a member of PARCC and Smarter Balanced, but it will not use either consortium’s assessments. The state belongs to both, but not as a governing member, a status that carries voting power.

Pennsylvania department of education spokesman Tim Eller told Education Week that the state has decided to develop its own tests. But for the time being, it will maintain “participating” membership in the two consortia, which entitles it to be part of each group’s discussions.

Here is how assessment consortium membership looks now. But keep in mind that the map doesn’t entirely capture the state of play on common assessments, because it only shows consortium membership.

It doesn’t reflect, for instance, that Oklahoma and Pennsylvania—while technically still consortium members—have decided to use other tests. It also doesn’t reflect the serious questioning in some states, like Florida, about continued consortium membership. And it doesn’t show pending consortium withdrawals that haven’t been formally completed yet, like Indiana’s.

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A version of this news article first appeared in the Curriculum Matters blog.