Image Credit: Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
Legislation that revamps standardized testing for Tennessee homeschool students while adding a third option for college entrance exams was signed into law by Governor Bill Lee on Friday.
HB1729/SB2636, sponsored by Representative William Slater (R-Gallatin-District 35) and Senator Kerry Roberts (R-Springfield-District 23), was opposed by the homeschool community upon its introduction over fears that it would force certain homeschooled students back into public schools based on invasive testing.
However, once the bill started making progress in the Tennessee General Assembly it turned out to be a win for the state’s homeschool families, doing away with a decades-old law that required remediation following low scores on mandated testing for Independent Homeschoolers in certain grades.
Despite consequences for scoring poorly on standardized tests having been outlined in state law since the 80’s for Independent Homeschool students in grades 5, 7, and 9, not a single student had ever been forced back to public school.
In calling for the law to be amended, the sponsors called the old statute “antiquated” and “draconian.”
While Independent Homeschool students were previously required to take the TCAP test through their local LEA, the newly signed law allows those students to either take the TCAP or “a standardized test selected by the parent-teacher that provides nationally normed analytics” proctored by an individual who is not related to the student and recorded by the developer of the nationally normed examination at the expense of the parent-teacher.
The requirement for the test to be recorded was cause for concern as it relates to privacy for some lawmakers in committee.
The new law also expands the choice of college entrance examinations in schools to include the Classic Learning Test (CLT) alongside the ACT and SAT.
While the CLT is a much newer test, and critics have stated that it is not as robust as the ACT or SAT, it is accepted by 300 institutions of higher education across the country, including some Tennessee colleges and universities and the number of institutions accepting the test is expected to increase over time.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
