Missouri trims annual test because of budget crunch

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- To save money on grading, Missouri is trimming its annual standardized tests by erasing exams for writing and solving complex problems.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education told school administrators last week that the two sections will be suspended until the 2012-2013 school year but urged districts to continue teaching students those topics.

Administrators estimate they can save $1.3 million per year by scrapping both sections. It costs more than $8 million annually to administer the tests.

For the now-suspended writing test, students were presented scenarios and required to write extended essays or stories. The other required students to demonstrate the rational behind their answers while solving more complicated problems. That could involve interpreting graphs and demonstrating their work while solving math questions.

Both suspended assessments required hand-grading instead of using a computer to check responses to multiple choice questions.

The state education department said in its message to school administrators that by suspending the two assessments, the agency would have enough money to administer the rest of the annual tests.

"It's strictly money. We would not suspend this if we had the money to do this," said Michele Clark, a spokeswoman for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Budget constraints have led other states to consider changes too.

Jim Hull, a senior policy analyst for the National School Boards Association, said several states, such as New York and North Carolina, have considered paring back tests. He said education departments and local school districts have used a variety of methods to trim spending while struggling with shrinking budgets.

The Missouri School Boards' Association said the writing and analytical sections of the testing are important for measuring student progress, but that budget troubles are forcing difficult decisions.

"They provide our schools with some very valuable data that you just can't get from a multiple choice test alone," spokesman Brent Ghan said.

The suspended tests will affect the end-of-course exams for English II, algebra I, and biology. It also affects science tests for fifth and eighth grades, communication arts exams for third and seventh grades and the math assessments for fourth and eighth grades.

The tests include assessments in communication arts and math for third through eighth grade and science for fifth and eight grade. There also are end-of-course exams for algebra, biology, English and government.

Missouri's budget troubles have led to changes in its standardized tests previously.

In 2001, the state delayed implementing a fine arts portion on the Missouri Assessment Program after then-Gov. Bob Holden cut out $899,000.

Then in 2002, the Legislature reduced the testing budget by 60 percent to $5.1 million. That left only enough money for the state to pay for math and communication arts assessment. However, many school districts decided to pay for the science and social studies exams themselves.