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Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
State education board moves closer to new standardized test
CEDAR RAPIDS - The Iowa Board of Education on Thursday moved one step closer to adopting the Common Core-aligned Smarter Balanced Assessments as the new standardized test for Iowa students.
The Smarter Balanced test, developed by a consortium of states that included Iowa, would replace the Iowa Testing Programs' Iowa Assessments.
A state task force recommended the new test in December 2014, and the state board voted last month to move forward with it.
The state now will begin an administrative review and public comment process that could take up to 180 days.
The Iowa Department of Education will hold a public hearing on the change on Nov. 3 and will accept written comments before then.
Both tests are taken by students in grades 3-8 and 11.
A cursive alphabet in a Coolidge Elementary School classroom in Cedar Rapids on Wednesday, May 28, 2014. (Liz Martin/The Gazette-KCRG)
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