Smarter Balanced

Commentary

April 9, 2020

Research tells us standardized admissions tests benefit under-represented students

ACT and SAT are better measures of college readiness than state tests, proponents say.

Wayne Camara and Michelle Croft

Student Health

March 11, 2020

Coronavirus could delay standardized testing until later in school year for California students

School districts can't cancel testing without approval, but they can delay it to later in the school year.

December 5, 2019

LA Unified releases new data measuring academic success of students over time

California’s largest school district published academic growth data, which measure how students improve from year to year.

October 29, 2019

University of California must drop admissions tests, civil rights groups urge

UC should not wait for a study on standardized testing, group says.

October 17, 2019

Frustration surfaces over redesign at East Bay school

Frustration with the pace of redesign surfaces at Stege Elementary, selected for an overhaul as one of California's lowest-performing schools.

October 13, 2019

Gov. Newsom vetoes allowing districts to substitute SAT for 11th grade state test

In veto message, Newsom says giving districts the test option would widen inequities in college admission that the bill was intended to narrow.

October 11, 2019

For better insights into California's new test results, look at achievement over time

Analytical tools that are available but not used can help schools better understand how to improve student performance.

October 10, 2019

How did students at your child’s school do on Smarter Balanced tests?

Readers can access results for California’s Smarter Balanced tests taken by students in the spring in nearly 10,000 school statewide.

October 9, 2019

Slow growth, big disparities after 5 years of Smarter Balanced tests

Average scores have been rising in English language arts, but dropping in math as students progress through middle and high school — a cause for worry.

John Fensterwald And Daniel J. Willis

Testing and Accountability

June 6, 2019

Students in California log on in record numbers to take online state tests

At least 92 percent of students have access to the minimum internet speed needed, but some districts have to stagger test-takers to avoid glitches.

May 26, 2019

Don’t use the SAT or ACT to undermine education accountability

College admissions tests rank students on a curve rather than measuring how well they are meeting state standards and are weaker predictors of college performance than high-school grades.

Pamela Burdman and Christopher Edley, Jr.

March 29, 2019

Another push to expand use of SAT in California amid criticism of test

One bill would let school districts give the SAT or ACT to all students, at state expense; another calls on UC and CSU to consider phasing out the tests altogether.

January 1, 2019

California education issues to watch in 2019 — and predictions of what will happen

Place your bets: curbs on charter schools, passage of universal preschool, more money for K-12, more teacher strikes and the resignation of Betsy DeVos; an untested governor and volatile president may affect the odds.

John Fensterwald, Yuxuan Xie, And Justin Allen

October 2, 2018

Small rise in California’s math and reading scores in 2018

There are signs of "encouragement" and "distress" in implementing the Common Core standards after four years of Smarter Balanced testing. There is also a dilemma: 11th-grade results.

John Fensterwald

September 30, 2018

Gov. Brown vetoes bill to let districts give SAT or ACT as 11th grade test

Dozens of districts are offering the tests at their own expense already, because scores on SAT and ACT, not Smarter Balanced, are what matters to high school juniors.