CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (CLARKSVILLENOW) – The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System hopes to move forward with state assessments in 2021, according to Schools Director Millard House.

House addressed the Clarksville City Council on Thursday, offering an update on the construction and expansion of CMCSS facilities and the effects of COVID-19 on the school year.

In his report, House discussed the issue of annual assessments, which are currently being discussed at the state level.

In March, the Tennessee Legislature voted to cancel state assessments, including TNready, as well as teacher assessments for the 2019-2020 school year. The bill was signed by Gov. Bill Lee on April 2.

No such legislation has yet been passed for the 2020-21 school year. House said CMCSS would encourage the state to move forward with assessments this year, but suspend accountability measures that might negatively impact teachers based on student performance.

“We have worked under the auspice that we really want to take state assessments because we want to see how our students are doing. So we are pushing legislatively for that,” House said.

“What we are pushing back against is the accountability. Many students are working from home. Teachers are learning these platforms in terms of virtual learning, so we are pushing back against the accountability in terms of evaluation systems and low performing schools. We want to know what our kids are doing so we can take the necessary steps, as we’ve done on an annual basis, to become an even better school district,” he said.

This sentiment is in line with the what’s been said by Lee and Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn, who have expressed interest in pushing forward with state assessments for the 2020-21 year without punishing schools or teachers for the performance in those assessments.

“I think it’s really important that we understand where our kids are, that we have an honest assessment of where our kids are academically, especially after many of them have had tremendous time away from the classroom,” said Lee during a virtual news conference held Friday, Oct. 16.

No decision has been reached regarding state assessments; however, the Legislature is expected to take up the issue early in 2021.

For more on Tennessee state assessments, visit the Department of Education’s website.