Student all throughout the United States are subjected to take the Common Core test, even the children who are under the special needs class. It is still an ongoing debate as most children with special needs understand things differently compared to their peers. One question is still left unanswered, Should children with special needs take the Common Core test?
As of the latest update, schools from 27 states and the District of Columbia have already opted to use the alternate test design for children with special needs. The alternative test is patterned and aligned to the Common Core State standards.
EdWeek cited that the alternate assessment was developed by the Dynamic Learning Maps or National Center and State Collaborative. Both are being federally funded consortia. Aside from these states, the state of Alaska is also trying to consider the alternative assessment but they backed out due to technical errors.
It was stated that around 1 percent of students of a total or 10 percent of students with disabilities are can potentially be eligible for the Common Core alternative tests. As for the rest of the students that were not illegible however, it was mentioned that they need to go through the Common Core test.
Though some students with special needs were required to take the common core test, they will be provided with enough supervision and guidance that would walk them through the entire test period. Still parents were outraged with the lack of exemption on students with special needs.
"He's come home saying things like 'I don't know anything. I can't do anything.' This is based on the two prior years of him taking the test - third and fourth grade," Lynda Flood, a mother of a child with special needs told CBS. "It rips my heart out because I know how smart he is; I know how intelligent he is; I know what he can do. Those tests, they don't prove at all what my child is capable of doing."
