ATLANTA — School starts on Friday for thousands of Georgia students and teachers.
Throughout the year, many parents think their children are tested too much, so this year, students will be taking less standardized test.
Channel 2's Linda Stouffer spoke with the State Superintendent Richard Woods about plans to help children in failing schools.
For Georgia students, a total of eight test have been eliminated, as well as some end of course test for dual-enrollment students.
“We don’t have one second to lose, because there are no reset buttons for our children,” Woods said.
Woods told Stouffer that a new law gives the state more influence with schools in the bottom 5 percent of achievement, but stressed that the law is not a takeover.
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“We should be very expressive in what our mission is. That’s not to come in and takeover a school, but to look at things very critically,” Woods said. “Look at things with support.”
Woods is reaching out to community faith groups and nonprofits to find creative solutions.
“We support and come alongside those schools and tell them not how to do the job, but how can we at the department state level come in and support them,” Woods told Stouffer.
That means the schools themselves could help decide how to spend flexible money for more teacher training or specific supplies.
Students starting Kindergarten this year will be tracked with a new readiness check to see their progress, which is part of the state’s focus on early learning to get more kids ready to read.
Channel 2 Action News is your home for Back 2 School coverage.
We’ll have teams of reporters and photographers, as well as NewsChopper 2 and Triple Team Traffic guiding you through the first days of the school year, every weekday on
Channel 2 Action News This Morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m.