Court: State education officials wrong in testing case

A Florida appeals court says that the state Department of Education was wrong in how it handled a request by a Sarasota County mother seeking an exemption from the state’s standardized tests.

The 1st District Court of Appeal on Wednesday ruled in favor of Paula Drew, whose 15-year-old daughter, Maddy is in the 10th grade.

Paula Drew in early 2016 asked for an exemption from Florida’s standardized tests because her daughter has a serious medical condition. The request was denied, but the department refused to grant an expedited hearing to reconsider the case.

The three-judge panel said that the department later acknowledged the error and has since granted a permanent exemption for Drew.

But the judges said the case was of such importance that they decided to issue a ruling anyway that faulted the department’s actions.