In the news: Reduced testing, free flu vaccines and more

It’s the day before Halloween, and we’ve got a plastic pumpkin full of spooky education headlines you may have missed.

  • Acknowledging concerns over too much standardized testing in schools, the Obama Administration has called for capping the amount of time students spend taking assessments.

  • In the NewsSeveral of Orange County’s larger school districts received high marks on new assessments tied to state standards in English and math.

  • Students at the Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana created pumpkin art as a unique approach to fundraising for their school.

  • A new law signed by Governor Brown requires schools to assess students who struggle with reading for dyslexia, recognized as the most common learning disability in the nation.

  • Pending a decision by the State Board of Education on Nov. 4, the company that administers state standardized tests for California could be fined $3.1 million for the delay in reporting test results from last spring.

  • Flu season officially begins on Sunday, and hundreds of students in Orange County and surrounding counties will get a free flu vaccine.
  • Visitors at Irvine’s ribbon-cutting event had the chance to tour the new Portola Springs Elementary School campus, which features a design and science lab, flexible-design classrooms, an innovation lab and more.