Dive Brief:

• One of the final decisions of the U.S. Department of Education under the Obama administration was to deny California’s request to offer only a pilot science exam this year instead of a full legacy test, but the state plans to proceed with its own plans anyway.
• EdSource reports California public schools will offer the pilot version of an online, Next Generation Science Standards-aligned test in less than two months on the orders of the state government — but some schools will probably still prepare their students for the legacy test anyway, given the federal decision.
• Theoretically, California could face sanctions from the department, including a loss of federal funding, but with a new administration yet to fully take over, potential consequences are entirely up in the air.

Dive Insight:

California did similar battle with the U.S. Department of Education over its phase-in of a test aligned with the Common Core State Standards. In that case, too, the Department of Education was not willing to forego a year of test-based accountability data to accommodate the rollout of the new test, but when California disobeyed orders, the state still kept all of its federal funding.

California is planning to test a limited pilot this spring, a more extensive pilot the following spring and the full, operational test in 2018-19. Washington State plans to embed new test questions in its legacy test for elementary schoolers this spring and have a fully operational NGSS-aligned test next year. This is the preferred model for federal accountability concerns, but California has already proven once before it can get away with its own plans. The question will be whether other states are emboldened to follow suit.