John White’s Attempt to Counter Upcoming NAEP Release: Publicizing Louisiana’s “Innovative Assessment Pilot”(?)

On April 10, 2018, the 2017 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) math and reading scores will be released.

Louisiana state superintendent John White is already nervous about what the public will see on that day. Like other state superintendents, White has already seen the scores prior to release.

So, here he is in the op-eds, arguably trying to minimize the damage by redirecting public attention to this April 02, 2018, Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) press release in the name of “innovative assessment” connected to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

From White’s April 03, 2018, op-ed in The Hill:

On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP, the share of American fourth-graders reading proficiently increased by 7 percentage points over the past quarter-century. …

But older students have not demonstrated equivalent progress. Eighth grade reading levels on the NAEP have been at a standstill for…