SB24-070:
Remote State Assessments for K-12 Online Students
Online students historically opt-out rates for state assessments at a higher rate than their traditional school peers (43% vs. 70% in 2023), leading to misconceptions about their academic performance. Virtual school students must take these tests in-person at locations like hotel meeting rooms, which are unfamiliar and with unknown proctors and create logistical and financial burdens for families. A Colorado Coalition of Cyberschool Families (CCCF) survey revealed kqey reasons for opting out include distance to testing sites (25.25%) and travel difficulties (30.61%). Additionally, 68% of cyberschool families have previously opted out, and 69.31% plan to continue, impacting the Colorado Department of Education's ability to evaluate student progress comprehensively.
Why is Remote Testing Necessary?
Remote state assessments will increase virtual student participation.
71.29% of cyberschool families in Colorado said they would be more willing to participate in state assessments if they were available remotely.
In-person testing creates unfair burdens for virtual schools.
Virtual schools must spend their limited resources on renting testing sites, providing computers, and allowing for staff time, when it could be going to instructional needs and materials for teachers and students.
In-person testing enhances anxiety and testing fatigue which negatively impacts student performance.
This is due to artificial testing environments in distant centers with unknown proctors, leading to lower scores (e.g., a 5-point standard deviation drop in reading scores with unfamiliar proctors). Additionally, 40% of cyberschool families consider test anxiety, a widespread issue causing discomfort before, during, or after tests, as a key factor in their decision to opt-out of state testing.
Remote state assessments are more inclusive and equitable.
Cyberschool families deserve equitable access to reliable and effective assessments. For virtual school students, testing at home represents continuity with their usual learning and testing environments.
Remote testing leads to improved outcomes.
Remote testing has shown stronger correlation with academic performance than facility-based testing for virtual students. In Iowa, Idaho, and California, virtual students taking remote assessments improved significantly. Continued remote assessments led to gains comparable to nearly one year of learning.
Remote testing can be done safely and securely.
Remote proctoring and monitoring can be done through image capturing, video streaming, screen capturing, and voice proctoring.
Remote state assessments have been successfully implemented in other states.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, states including Idaho, Iowa, and California enabled home-based state assessments for students in the 2020-21 school year. Oregon and Virginia have policies allowing cyberschool students to take state assessments remotely, matching their primary instructional model. Similarly, Arkansas, Kansas, Utah, and West Virginia passed laws in 2023 for online state assessments for cyberschool students.
What Does SB24-070Do?
The bill allows online schools to offer remote state assessments to their students in a setting that aligns with the student's regular educational instruction.
Students will take the assessment at a designated date and time in a synchronous session managed by school staff.
Students must use a device with a camera so that a proctor van monitor the student via video for the duration of the assessment.
Proctors will oversee no more than 10 students per assessment.
Students must not exit the assessment unless and until instructed by the proctor.
The proctor will verify the submission of each student’s state assessment.
Help CCCF Advocate for SB24-070
Your voice is crucial in this endeavor. By signing on to letters to the editor and providing testimony before committee hearings at the Colorado General Assembly, you can make a profound impact. Each letter, each testimony, adds strength to our cause, ensuring that the educational needs and preferences of our community are heard and addressed. Contact us at families@coloradocyberfamilies.org to get involved!