(Missourinet) – In a significant shift from traditional practices, twenty K-12 school districts in Missouri have been granted permission to adopt a new method for assessing student performance. The Missouri Board of Education has approved a three-year exemption for these districts from the state’s standardized tests, commonly referred to as the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) tests.
Instead of the annual MAP tests, these districts will now administer tests to students multiple times throughout the year. This approach aims to provide educators with real-time results, eliminating the prolonged wait of several months that typically accompanies the MAP tests.
The school districts that have received this exemption include Affton, Branson, Center, Confluence Academies, Fayette, Lebanon, Lee’s Summit, Lewis County, Liberty, Lindbergh, Lonedell, Mehlville, Neosho, Ozark, Parkway, Pattonville, Raymore-Peculiar, Ritenour, Shell Knob, and Ste. Genevieve.
Jeremy Tucker, the superintendent of Liberty School District, expressed optimism about the change. He believes that this new method will enable both students and educators to pinpoint areas that require immediate improvement. Speaking to the Missouri Board of Education on Tuesday, Tucker said, “Assessment in and of itself in terms of traditional end-of-year assessment, as compared to adaptive assessments that are leveraged over the course of the year, helps us meet that goal of personalizing learning rather than aiming for the average. It also offers students clarity on their current standing.”
Emphasizing the student-centric nature of this change, Tucker added, “It’s not just about academic growth. A significant part of this approach focuses on real-world learning experiences, encompassing both engagement and application, which I believe is equally crucial.”
However, before these districts can fully transition away from the standardized MAP tests, they will require approval from the federal government.
