Tucson Unified School District Reduces Testing to Enhance Learning
The Tucson Unified School District (TUSD) is taking significant steps to alleviate the testing burden on its students. In response to an initiative led by the Tucson Education Association (TEA), the district has agreed to cut down on the number of standardized tests administered during the academic year.
TEA, which represents educators in Tucson’s largest school district, gathered over 1,200 signatures from educators and families advocating for a shift towards “meaningful learning rather than endless tests.” This collective effort has prompted the district to reevaluate its assessment strategies.
Flori Huitt, the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction at TUSD, confirmed the district’s commitment to this new approach. “Because we were under a desegregation order that we just got out of, we had additional assessments that maybe other districts didn’t have,” Huitt explained. “We are trying to be very cautious and just very conscientious about the decisions we make for our students and our teachers.”
While students will still be required to take mandatory statewide exams, such as the AZELLA for English language learners, the district will eliminate quarterly benchmark assessments. This change is expected to reduce test-related anxiety among students and allow more time for instructional activities.
Huitt expressed optimism about the new direction, stating, “Some students have a lot of test anxiety, so this will help reduce that and we can focus more on the instructional time ensuring that our students are making progress toward the standards and skill mastery. So that’ll be good for us.”
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