COEUR d'ALENE — Education officials in Kootenai County expressed support for two testing waivers unanimously approved last week by the Idaho State Board of Education.

The one-year waivers will remove a requirement for high school freshman to take the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium exam, a Common Core-aligned exam introduced in Idaho last year, as well as the requirement for high school sophomores to pass the exam in order to graduate. Both waivers were brought before the board on Wednesday by State Superintendent Sherri Ybarra who, according to a press release, received feedback from several districts that the requirements were "not beneficial and unrealistic."   

"It was clear that we needed to take a step back and provide some relief for local school districts," Ybarra said in a press release. "I support the minimum testing requirements — it is too soon to make the new summative assessment a high stakes assessment for students in 10th grade. We also wanted to provide the ninth-grade assessment as an option to school districts throughout the state and allow their local leadership the flexibility to exercise local control in the best interest of our students."

Post Falls School District Superintendent Jerry Keane told The Press that his district is supportive of reducing the amount of mandated testing, which was accomplished through the waivers. He added that the district has advocated in favor of giving 10th-grade students until they are seniors to pass the assessment, or providing an alternate route to graduation.

"That has been part of the plan for several years," Keane said, adding that the SBOE did a good job seeking input from districts on the waivers.

Matt Handelman, Coeur d'Alene School District superintendent, said the district is still exploring what its options are in light of the two waivers. District officials were not asked about the plan prior to it being presented, he added, but it could provide educators with more flexibility as it relates to high school assessments.

"As with many topics facing our district today, I am in support of reason and local choice on items that are not required," Handelman said.  

At the Lakeland Joint School District, Assistant Superintendent Lisa Sexton applauded Ybarra's consistent message of making sure statewide choices prioritize doing what is right for Idaho's students. The result of the waivers, Sexton said, is a good start toward addressing the many challenges the new state assessment poses for districts and students alike.

"Much of the math assessment is geometry and Algebra II," Sexton said as an example. "(But) The vast majority of our students don't take Algebra II until their junior year. This makes testing our sophomores challenging."

The exam was field tested throughout the state last year, providing officials with a baseline for measuring student achievement in Idaho. According to the release, the test will be administered again this spring and give the SBOE further insight into how students and teachers have adapted to the new test.

One of the primary motivations in approving the waiver, specifically with making the exam a graduation requirement, is the newness of the test itself. Sophomores will still need to take the test this spring in compliance with federal guidelines, but will be the second consecutive class to not have success on the test connected with graduation.

"Federal law requires a standardized test aligned with the state math and English standards to be administered at least once to students while in high school," the release said. "the board's action is in compliance with the minimum federal requirements."