Manuel Solano
Posted on September 11, 2025
Funding for Colorado’s public education system stands at a crossroads. The state’s current struggle to cut millions of dollars from the budget offers the opportunity to cut out an area of wasteful spending and eliminate an unfair program – high-stakes standardized testing. For more than two decades and a whole generation of students, this has dominated classrooms, shaped curriculum, drained resources, and placed undue pressure on students and educators alike. While originally intended to ensure accountability and equity, these tests have instead become blunt instruments— measuring privilege more than potential. Decades of standardized testing have not improved learning nor closed the achievement gap.
Colorado taxpayers spend an estimated $60 million yearly on standardized testing-related expenses, including the CMAS system, test prep, and remediation programs. These costs extend beyond dollars: instructional time is lost, creativity is stifled, and students—especially those from marginalized communities—face increased stress and tragic, immeasurable disengagement.
Parents and the public are being deceived thinking CMAS means something it doesn’t. Test scores don’t actually tell how your kid is doing in school.
Research reveals that socioeconomic status matters. Students living in poverty or those struggling to learn English generally score low on CMAS tests. Students who are lucky enough to be born into a family with resources and stability generally score well on CMAS. Seldom does the data show anything different from one year to the next. Parents and the public are being deceived thinking CMAS means something it doesn’t. Test scores don’t actually tell how your kid is doing in school. Unless cohorts of kids are being chosen and followed across their academic career, aggregate test scores are meaningless.
A wise person once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Millions of dollars spent every year on CMAS testing is pure insanity. It’s a huge waste of taxpayer money that should be used to engage students in real learning.
In 2016 Congress passed ESSA, Every Student Succeeds Act, which gave states flexibility to rethink their accountability systems. ESSA opened the door for states to adopt more meaningful and equitable approaches to accountability. Yet Colorado’s legislative body continues to support a flawed system based on high stakes standardized testing which collects data showing the same pattern of achievement year after year.
We should listen to the experts, our professional licensed teachers, to tell us about authentic ways to measure learning which are more meaningful to students and their parents than standardized tests results:
- Portfolio-based assessments: Students demonstrate learning through projects, performances, and written work collected over time. These methods reflect real-world skills and allow for creativity and depth.
- Formative assessments: Weekly tests or quizzes provide ongoing feedback to improve instruction and monitor student learning.
- Multiple measures: Graduation rates, teacher-created assessments, discipline data, and student voice surveys offer a fuller, more nuanced picture of student success.
These approaches are more humane and accurate. A single test score cannot capture a child’s creativity, resilience, or brilliance. Every child must be seen, heard, and valued—not reduced to a number. We should honor diverse ways of learning and use assessments that reflect each student’s talents and progress.
With the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education and the federal message of returning the responsibility of education back to the states, now is the perfect time to do bold things. Let’s break the chain of mandated high-stakes standardized testing. It’s the epitome of fraud, waste and abuse. Redirect that $60 million back into the classroom. Pay our teachers a livable wage. Support wrap-around services for needy student populations. Hire mental health professionals in every school.
Let’s invest in a system that empowers rather than punishes. Let’s build a system that reflects the full humanity of our students.
Manuel Solano graduated from Adams 14 School District, University of Colorado, and CU Law School. He was the regional director of civil rights law firm called MALDEF, and a professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver. He now continues his work as an attorney advocating for public education justice as a board member of the organization, Advocates for Public Education Policy (A4PEP).
