Dive Brief:

• Even though results from the latest (and in many states, first) round of Common Core-linked testing won't be available until later this fall, District Administration says administrators can start improving their systems already.
• One of the big takeaways has to do with data on testing that's already available in some states: opt-out rates. While parents and teachers value the information from tests, they resent the instructional time lost.
• In response, some administrators are trying to adjust test times and lobbying state officials to cut back on state-mandated assessments.

Dive Insight:

The other key lessons District Administration uncovered, in advance of the results release include a need for better communication with parents, students and community members about privacy. Some administrators heard from parents concerned the computers used for testing would take retinal scans of students. 

To dispel those notions, administrators must give specific information about the controls in place, including server security and testing company policy. In general, the experts who District Administration spoke with said administrators should be proactive about dispelling misconceptions and fears. Finally, many districts still have to boost bandwidth and computer numbers, after a glitchy rollout last year.

Also of note: The lag time between testing and results has proved an irritant for school officials, who often use summer as a time to assess what went wrong and what went well the previous year.

"I rely on data to make decisions," says Bill Bressler, chief academic officer of Legacy Traditional School District in Arizona. "It was very frustrating for us to spend a summer without the data we need to plan effectively for the fall."