Dodging an assessment bullet

04 Feb Dodging an assessment bullet

By Dale Chu

In an interview Miguel Cardona gave before he stepped down, the now former education secretary offered a curious answer to the question of his biggest regret. Here’s what he said:

You never punch out. There’s always more you can do. I wanted to do more in terms of assessments. I think our country is ready for an evolution of our assessments, and I was looking forward to engaging in that work of making sure our assessments are more sensible, that we use them to enhance good pedagogy. So I wish we had more time to do that.

Of all the things Cardona could have mentioned—the FAFSA debacle, student loan forgiveness failures, the slide in student achievement—he went with testing. Few would argue against an “evolution” in assessments—if that meant more useful and relevant tests. But considering Cardona’s lukewarm posture toward testing throughout his term, his answer is more puzzling than revealing.

During his four years in office, the U.S. Department of Education was largely AWOL on state testing, barely enforcing ESSA’s requirements (i.e., subgroup scores and participation rates). The agency turned a blind eye to states messing with cut scores, and was unserious when it came to the nation’s poor showing on international exams. Instead, the former secretary allowed states to downplay the meager progress made post-pandemic.

Meanwhile, teachers unions were open about their desire to dismantle the federal testing requirement. In all likelihood, this is what Cardona had in mind when he said assessments were his biggest regret: he didn’t have the chance to throw more sand into ESSA’s assessment gears.

Regardless, Cardona’s exit does little to clarify the future of state testing, and inattention could persist under the new administration. But even with these unknowns, we may have dodged a bullet. Another four years of Cardona would likely have further weakened assessment integrity—and his departure alone could provide reason for cautious optimism.