ATLANTA - Georgia's first- and second-graders are one step closer to not having to take standardized tests and school districts in the state are a step closer to more flexibility in class sizes.
A bill eliminating the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests before third grade passed the House Education Committee on Thursday. The bill, sponsored by Rep. David Casas, a Republican from Lilburn, cuts testing not required under the federal No Child Left Behind law and saves $1.5 million in test administration costs.
Casas said his aim is eventually to eliminate all unnecessary testing in Georgia. State schools Superintendent Kathy Cox has expressed support for the move.
Critics worry that not testing in early grades would make students less competitive with their peers nationally and would make them less prepared for testing in third grade. Those tests are a key part of data used to meet federal law and to determine whether a student can go on to fourth grade.
CLASS SIZES
The same committee also approved a bill giving Georgia school districts more flexibility amid the state's fiscal crisis has passed a key committee.
The legislation allows districts to increase class size by one student in kindergarten through fifth-grade and by two students in sixth-grade through high school through 2013. It also lifts state controls on how schools spend their funding such as how much is spent on libraries or transportation.
It passed the House Education Committee on Thursday.
Rep. Tommy Benton, a Republican from Jefferson who sponsored the bill, said he wants schools to have greater freedom as lawmakers prepare to cut hundreds of millions of dollars from education spending.
Wednesday
June 25th, 2025
5:48PM
