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TESTING PROGRAMS 

Adopted: 3-14-78
    Revised: 11-16-05, 6-10-15, 12-11-19, 2-12-2025

Philosophy:

The South Sanpete Board of Education recognizes its responsibility to implement standardized testing procedures that comply with state and federal laws to ensure that student progress is accurately measured through standardized tests. The District, schools, and teachers may use information from such standardized testing as an additional tool to plan, measure, and evaluate the effectiveness of the District’s educational program.

Policy: 

The district’s Assessment Director is responsible for establishing specific guidelines and procedures that District personnel follow when administering standardized student tests in accordance with state and federal laws.

Guidelines and Procedures: 

All educators must take reasonable steps to ensure that standardized tests reflect the ability, knowledge, aptitude, or basic skills of each student taking standardized tests. 

  1. All teachers and administrators shall receive annual in-service training concerning these guidelines and procedures, including the Standard Test Administration and Testing Ethics Training and Policy as written and updated by the Utah State Board of Education. 
  2. All schools within the District shall administer mandated tests in compliance with established District calendars. 

District Employee Compliance with Assessment Requirements, Protocols, and Security
District personnel shall prepare, administer, and return all secure test material in strict accordance with procedures specified in test administration manuals, District guidelines and procedures, District policy, Utah Board of Education rules, and state application of federal funding requirements.

  1. All standardized tests shall be administered without any reference materials being made available to students unless the state or the publisher of the test specifies otherwise. 
  2. Teachers, administrators, and all District personnel shall not: 
    1. Provide a student directly or indirectly with a specific question, answer, or the content of any particular item in a standardized assessment before assessment administration; 
    2. Download, copy, print, take a picture of, or make any facsimile of protected assessment material before, during, or after assessment administration without the express permission of the State Superintendent and a District administrator; 
    3. Change, alter, or amend any student online or paper response or any other standardized assessment material at any time in a way that alters the student's intended response; 
    4. Use any prior form of any standardized assessment, including pilot assessment materials, that the State Superintendent has not released in assessment preparation without express permission of the State Board and a District administrator; 
    5. Violate any specific assessment administrative procedure specified in the assessment administration manual, violate any state or District standardized assessment policy or procedure, or violate any procedure specified in the State Board testing ethics policy; 
    6. Fail to administer a state-required assessment; 
    7. Fail to administer a state-required assessment within the designated assessment window; 
    8. Submit falsified data; 
    9. Allow a student to copy, reproduce, or photograph an assessment item or component, or 
    10. Knowingly do anything that would affect the security, validity, or reliability of standardized assessment scores of any individual student, class, or school. 

A school employee shall promptly report an assessment violation or irregularity to a building administrator, the District Superintendent, or the State Superintendent.

An educator who violates this rule or an assessment protocol is subject to disciplinary action by the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission or Board, consistent with Utah Administrative Rule R277-515.

All assessment material, questions, and student responses for required assessments are designated protected, consistent with Utah Code § 63G-2-305, until released by the State Superintendent.

The District shall ensure that all assessment content is secured so that only authorized personnel have access and that assessment materials are returned to the State Superintendent following testing, as the State Superintendent requires.

An individual educator or school employee may not retain or distribute test materials, in either paper or electronic form, for purposes inconsistent with ethical test administration or beyond the period allowed for test administration. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-8 (June 7, 2024)

District Assessment Training

District assessment staff will use the Standard Test Administration and Testing Ethics Policy to train all assessment administrators and proctors. (The policy can be obtained online at www.schools.utah.gov/assessment or from the State Board of Education at 250 East 500 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84111. 

At least once each school year, the District will provide professional development for all educators, administrators, and assessment administrators concerning guidelines and procedures for statewide assessment administration, including educator responsibility for assessment security and proper professional practices. 

The District may not release state assessment data publicly until the State Superintendent authorizes it to do so. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-5(5), (6), (7) (June 7, 2024)

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-3 (June 7, 2024)

School Responsibilities:

The District, school, or educator may not use a student’s score on a state-required assessment to determine: 

  1. The student’s academic grade, or a portion of the student’s academic grade, for the appropriate course or 
  2. Whether the student may advance to the next grade level. 

The District, a school, or an educator may consider a student’s score on a state-required assessment as one of multiple lines of evidence to determine whether a student may enroll in an honors, advanced placement, or International Baccalaureate course. However, a student may not be prohibited from enrolling in one of these courses based on the student’s score on a state-required assessment or because the student was exempted from taking a state-required assessment.

In accordance with Utah Code § 53G-6-803, the school shall reasonably accommodate a parent’s request that a student demonstrate proficiency on a state-required assessment to fulfill a course requirement. 

The District and school shall require an educator, assessment administrator, and proctor to individually sign the testing ethics signature page provided by the State Superintendent, acknowledging or assuring that the educator administers assessments consistent with ethics and protocol requirements. 

All educators and assessment administrators shall conduct assessment preparation, supervise assessment administration, and certify assessment results before providing results to the State Superintendent. 

All educators, assessment administrators, and proctors shall securely handle and return all protected assessment materials, where instructed, in strict accordance with the procedures and directions specified in assessment administration manuals, District rules and policies, and the Standard Test Administration and Testing Ethics Policy. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-6 (June 7, 2024)

Assessment Results:

  1. The results of an individual student’s standardized tests will be shared with the student and parent/guardian at the student’s SEP/SEOP conference or as soon as the District receives them. 
  2. Test data will be used to do the following: 
    1. To assess a school’s or District’s overall curriculum; 
    2. To assess individual student achievement; 
    3. To communicate student achievement to students, parents, District, state, and other professional groups; 
    4. To assist the administration in determining areas in need of improvement and to direct professional development; and 
    5. To reflect the overall academic health of a class, subject, school or the whole District. 
  3. Standardized testing statistical data and results will be available on the district and state reporting websites to schools, students, residents, and the general public. 

Students with Disabilities: 

The District shall administer statewide assessments to all students enrolled in the grade level or course to which the assessment applies, with the following exceptions: 

  1. The student has been exempted under the procedures outlined in this Policy (IL). 
  2. A student’s IEP team, English Learner team, or Section 504 accommodation plan team shall determine that the student’s participation in statewide assessments is consistent with the Utah Participation and Accommodations Policy. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-5(1) June 7, 2024)

Participation of Private and Home School Students in State-Sponsored Testing

Home school students who are Utah residents and whose parents reside in the District may participate in state-sponsored testing as follows: 

  1. The student must have satisfied the home school requirements outlined in Utah Code § 53G-6-204. 
  2. The home school student must pay charges or fees for the testing, just as students enrolled in the school must pay charges or fees. 
  3. The District shall determine which school(s) qualifying home school students will take U-PASS state-sponsored tests. 
  4. The District may require home school students to provide a parent or adult to monitor or proctor tests, as appropriate. 

Upon request of a home-school student or the student’s parent or guardian, the District shall provide a copy of the schedule of state-sponsored dates, the locations at which home-school students may be tested, and the District’s policies relating to home-school student participation in state-sponsored tests.  Home school students who desire to participate in a particular state-sponsored test must request in writing at least 30 days before the test date.  The District shall respond in writing to the request at least 10 days after receipt.  Where the request to participate is approved, the District shall provide written notice to the home school student and his or her parent or guardian of testing rules, including required identification and proof of residency for adults and students and implements or materials that the home school student may or may not bring or use for the test. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-604-4 December 11, 2023)
Private School Student Participation

Private school students who are Utah residents and attending private schools located within the District boundaries may participate in state-sponsored testing as follows: 

  1. The private school student’s school must request permission from the District on behalf of the student to participate. 
  2. The student or private school must pay the testing costs in advance. These costs include materials, scoring, reporting, and State-related costs. 
  3. The District shall determine in which school(s) private school students may take state-sponsored tests. 
  4. The District shall determine the limits on the number of non-public school students that the school can accommodate. 
  5. The district may require the participating private school to allow administrators to participate in monitoring or proctoring tests as appropriate. 

Upon request of a private school located within District boundaries, the District shall provide the private school a copy of the schedule of state-sponsored dates, the locations at which private school students may be tested, and the District’s policies relating to private school student participation in state-sponsored tests.  Private schools that want their students to participate in a particular U state-sponsored test must request in writing at least 30 days before the test date.  The District shall respond in writing to the request at least 10 days after receipt.  Where the request to participate is approved, the District shall provide written notice to the private school of testing rules, including required identification and proof of residency for staff and students and implements or materials that the private school or student may or may not bring or use for the test. 

Private school students who are not Utah residents may participate in state-sponsored testing only after paying the full cost of the individual assessments in advance. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-604-3 (December 11, 2023)

Bureau of Indian Affairs Schools Administrator Training

The administrators of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) schools are responsible for meeting their students' state-sponsored requirements. The District shall provide materials and training to administrators of BIA schools within the District on the schedule that applies to the District. The District shall also notify administrators of BIA schools located in the District of all information and training on state-sponsored provided by the District. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-604-6 December 11, 2023))

Parental Right to Exempt Students from State-Required Assessments

A parent has the right to exempt the parent’s student from a state-required assessment. A student exempted from a state-required assessment may not be penalized (put in an unfavorable position or at a disadvantage) because of the exemption. This policy sets forth the required procedure for exemption and addresses related matters. The District may establish its own policy concerning any assessments required by the District but not state-required assessments, including whether a student can be exempted from District assessments and what consequences there are for taking or failing to take such an assessment. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-7(1), (2), (6) (June7, 2024)

Exception Regarding Basic Civics Test

A student must pass the basic civics test to receive a high school diploma, as provided in Utah Code § 53E-4-205(2) and Utah Administrative Rules R277-700-8(2)(b)(i). A parent may exempt the parent’s student from taking the basic civics test. Still, the student may not graduate without successfully completing that test requirement, notwithstanding the prohibition on penalizing a student exempted from state-required assessments. 

Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-7(3)(c) (June7, 2024)

Utah Admin. Rules R277-700-8(2) (June7, 2024) Utah Code § 53E-4-205(2) (2021)

Exemption Procedure

To exempt a student from one or more state-required assessments, the parent shall, on an annual basis, fill out the Parental Exclusion from State Assessment form and deliver it to the principal or the District at least one day before the beginning of any assessment from which the student is to be exempted. (At the discretion of the District and upon parental request, the District may exempt a student from a state-required assessment when the form is delivered less than a day before the assessment begins.) The form may be delivered by email, mail, or in person. The form is available at https://schools.utah.gov/assessment. (The District may create a District-specific form if that form lists the District’s required assessments from which the student may be exempted, and the form also contains all the information described in the Parental Exclusion from State Assessment form.) Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-7(4) (June7, 2024)

Additional Requirements

The following standards apply to parental exemptions:  

  1. Students may not be rewarded for participation in a state-required assessment or performance on a state-required assessment. 
  2. A teacher, principal, or other district administrator may contact a parent to verify that the parent submitted a parental exemption form from the State Assessment. 
  3. A parent may be requested to meet with a teacher, principal, or other District administrator to discuss a request to exclude the parent’s student from taking a state-required assessment, but this is not a requirement. 
  4. The individual test results and scores shall be provided to the student's parent, consistent with the protection of student privacy. 
  5. If a student exempted from participating in a state-required assessment is present during a test administration, the student shall be provided with an alternative learning experience. 
  6. A student exempted from participation in a state-required assessment may be allowed to be physically present in the room during test administration. Utah Admin. Rules R277-404-7(5), (7) to (10) (June7, 2024)
Referral to State Board for Violation

Any employee violating this policy may be subject to adverse employment action, including, but not limited to, termination of employment. In addition, any such educator may be referred to the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission of the State Board of Education for possible disciplinary action. 

pdfIL_Testing_Programs.pdf