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November 2020

Dear Parent,

Given the COVID-19 pandemic, many schools are offering or requiring students to learn remotely this year. Teachers are able to use many tools, tests, and classroom strategies to identify what students know and can do while providing remote instruction. However, Indiana’s statewide summative assessments, like ILEARN and IREAD-3, must be administered to
students in person. Here are four things you need to know about statewide testing for Spring 2021:

1. Schools are required by state and/or federal legislation to administer assessments, such
   as ILEARN, ISTEP+, I AM, and WIDA.
2. Statewide summative assessments are considered high-stakes and may not be given to
   students remotely since doing so would pose a risk to the accuracy of test data.
3. IDOE provided schools guidance for administering state assessments to students who
   are learning remotely. Some strategies schools can use to safely administer tests
   include:
   ● Bringing students onsite for 1:1 or small group testing.
   ● Administering tests for remote learners at different times than onsite learners.
   ● Administering tests at a secure, alternative location using IDOE’s Homebound
   Students guidance (see page 27 of the Indiana Assessments Policy Manual).
   ● Administering tests to groups of students on different days.
4. Although state summative assessments may not be administered from home, schools
   and teachers may decide to have students take classroom tests or benchmark tests
   while learning from home.

Please contact your child’s school for more information regarding specific information about testing plans for your child.

Sincerely,
The Indiana Department of Education