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Board receives monitoring report on Guardrail 5; district says testing represents about 2% of instructional time
Summary
District staff presented a monitoring report on Guardrail 5 (protect appropriate testing). The board voted to receive the interim metrics; discussion focused on balancing standardized testing, performance assessments and local flexibility.
Jefferson County Public Schools staff presented an interim monitoring report on Guardrail 5 — protecting appropriate testing — and the board voted to receive the report at the June 24 meeting.
The presenter described Guardrail 5 as a commitment to provide the minimum number of district‑mandated assessments needed to monitor student outcomes while preserving instructional time and meaningful learning. The report summarized assessments into three categories: federally or state required; district required that support student learning; and optional assessments. Staff said the district’s analysis shows testing time amounts to roughly 2% of the school year’s instructional hours (out of 1,093 hours) and provided first‑year baseline participation metrics: about 71% participation in milestones, 90% in defenses of learning and 95% in district standardized assessments (MAP or CERT) for the windows reported.
Presenters emphasized a balanced assessment system combining standardized measures with performance‑based and formative assessments. The district said it will continue professional learning on data literacy, expand pilots of evidence‑of‑learning checks and create collaborative calibration time for school leaders and Journey to Success leads.
Board members asked detailed questions about teacher‑created assessments, high school participation rates (the CERT spring window showed about 83% participation), and a dip in middle school participation for milestones and defenses of learning. Staff said teacher‑created formative assessments are frequent and intended to remain teacher‑driven, while the district will provide supports and common high‑quality instructional resources to promote fidelity and reduce unnecessary testing. They noted chronic absenteeism and spring testing windows (AP exams and Kentucky summative assessments) can affect high‑school participation percentages.
After discussion, Miss Duncan moved and Miss Lister seconded a motion to receive the monitoring report on interim metrics for Guardrail 5; the board approved the motion by voice vote ("Ayes have it"). The board and staff discussed state changes to accountability and a proposed Kentucky framework that may increase local flexibility beginning in a 2026 legislative cycle; staff cautioned that federal testing requirements would remain in place unless changed at the federal level.
The report frames the district’s next steps as increasing milestone participation, strengthening high‑school engagement with defenses of learning, and expanding evidence‑of‑learning pilot work.
