As new school assessments begin, Hogan and legislators…

 …weigh the issue of testing.

As 71,000 Maryland public school students begin taking new tests aligned with the Common Core standards this week, a small group of parents, legislators and advocates are pushing to scale back or eliminate some testing.

And one state legislator is hoping to convince Gov. Larry Hogan to use a nearly forgotten clause in a 2010 agreement with the federal government to ditch the new tests completely.

A spokeswoman for Hogan said the governor is concerned about new standards put into place in public school classrooms across Maryland last school year. He appears to be leaving open the possibility that he would work to remove both the standards and the test.

“He will be reviewing ways to improve them if they work, or remove them if they don’t. He has not made any firm commitment,” said Shareese Churchill, Hogan’s press secretary.

>>> Read more Baltimore Sun.

Maryland State Department of Education HQ in Baltimore City – MD.

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