Although school districts and students throughout the county have endured a topsy-turvy year, the usual state standardized tests are being administered.

The state Department of Education secured permission from the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., to allow districts to give 2020-21 academic achievement tests as late as the start of the next school year.

Brian White, Butler Area School District superintendent, said while the Pennsylvania System of Schools Assessment (PSSA) test given to students in third through eighth grades and 11th grade will continue to be used to determine students' level of academic achievement and determine learning gaps, it will not be used to give classroom teachers a score as part of their annual evaluations.

He said at Butler Area, students who are learning in school will be given the tests later this spring.

Families who have chosen to continue to keep their students home to learn remotely can bring their students in to take the PSSA, which takes several days to complete in each subject.

The Department of Education, White said, did not create a version of any required standardized test that can be taken by students learning remotely.

He said 18% of Butler Area's students are learning remotely due to the pandemic.

White decided against giving students the test in the fall to alleviate the significant number of testing days that would be required in the 2021-22 school year with two PSSAs.

“We chose to do it at the tail end of this year, so next year can be as normal as possible,” White said.

He said no matter when the PSSA is given, it will be difficult for students given the disruptive school year.

“They're going to test on subject material they've been in and out of,” he said.

White seemed frustrated that the U.S. Department of Education did not waive or shorten the PSSA for this year to allow students more learning time.

“I really understand the need to document the academic skills and learning that were lost, but there are much simpler ways that would take much less time to do,” he said.

David Foley, superintendent at South Butler County School District, said the PSSA will show how much, if any, learning was lost when schools were closed during the pandemic.

“We think it's important to get a snapshot of our students right now,” Foley said.

He said gauging whether a student is grasping daily material is much easier when classes are in-person instead of over the internet because the teacher is engaging in activities and interacting with students.

“I think we've done a pretty good job of interacting and livestreaming with the kids when we were closed from November to mid-January,” Foley said. “We may not experience significant gaps, but we won't know until we assess and see where the students are.”

PSSAs will be given at South Butler starting next month and continuing into the fall, Foley said.

He said the district will offer four to six weeks of summer school for students in kindergarten through eighth grade who have struggled with grasping their subjects during the pandemic.

The summer school will last about four weeks and see students bused to the campus, where they will also receive breakfast and lunch, Foley said.

He is also working on a method for high school students to recover credits.

Administrators are waiting until the end of the third nine weeks of school later this month to look at grades and determine which students at South Butler will be targeted for summer school, which will be voluntary.

Kendall Alexander, press secretary at the Department of Education, said student safety is the reason the department asked to extend the time period when the federally required tests could be administered.

“We're allowing local education agencies to ensure conditions are safe and student participation is representative,” Alexander said.

She said the department will continue to explore additional flexibilities as appropriate and available.