The U.S. Department of Education in an Aug. 10 letter signed off on Montana’s plan for a one-year waiver that will allow OPI to encourage more schools to participate in a field test of what are called “through-year” assessments in grades three through eight for reading/language arts and math. That means participating schools will not administer existing statewide general assessments and instead complete assessments throughout the year using the Montana Alternative Student Testing pilot program