College Board Delays Rollout of New Test for 8th Graders

The College Board has put on hold its plans to introduce a new standardized examination for eighth graders this fall, according to The New York Times.

When it announced the new exam last summer, the College Board said the test, called ReadiStep, was designed to help eighth graders identify academic strengths and weaknesses earlier on in the education process, so they could choose their high-school courses more carefully. College Board officials also stressed that the exam would play no role in college admissions, with scores going only to students and high schools.

Critics were skeptical, however, suggesting that the exam was motivated more by commercial reasons. They also questioned whether cash-strapped school districts could afford to pay for it.

That financial concern apparently played a role in the organization’s decision to delay offering the test. “With the unforeseen challenge of the current economic situation, many states, districts, and schools simply don’t have the resources to spend on new programs,” the Times quoted Sheila Jamison, a College Board spokeswoman, as saying. “When a large enough group of states, districts, and schools have the resources that will enable them to launch ReadiStep, we will launch it.” —Charles Huckabee