In a public address to the city, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced on Thursday, 3/19 that Chicago Public Schools (CPS) would extend their closures through 4/20 in light of Covid-19. Lightfoot stated, “We need to give parents and guardians plenty of advance notice about this reality and the ability to plan.” This decision came to light after consulting with the city health commissioner Dr. Allison Arwardy and schools chief Janice Jackson who contend that they expect an “upward trajectory of the virus spread.”
Previously, the state had intended schools to be closed through 3/30 after Governor Pritzker mandated that all schools (both public and private) in the state of Illinois close from 3/17-3/30. It’s still unclear if another state-wide mandate will follow CPS’s lead in extending their closures.
While the safety of students and their families is the city’s top priority, this makes for an extremely unusual school year for the country’s third largest school district. Just last fall, CPS students missed 12 days of schooling during the Chicago Teacher Strike.
Furthermore, after Mayor Lightfoot made her announcement, Janice Jackson made a second announcement on behalf of CPS in an email to families on Thursday evening: all standardized tests, including the NWEA MAP test, would be canceled this spring.
The NWEA MAP test, in addition to serving as a helpful benchmark of progress in student learning, is also used for Selective Enrollment into Chicago’s top public high schools and academic centers. Jackson stated, “We are fully committed to ensuring students can access assessments tied to college entry, selective enrollment admission, and grade promotion, and we will keep families informed regarding any adjustments to the assessment calendar.”
CPS had not announced if they will reschedule the NWEA MAP exam to this fall or if they will even use the NWEA MAP exam in the admission's process for Selective Enrollment High Schools and Academic Centers for current 5th and 7th graders. That said, Test Prep Chicago will keep all families updated on any and all CPS announcements regarding testing.
Lauren Lynch, Tutoring Coordinator
lauren@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266