The Trump administration announced Friday that it would provide waivers excusing states from performing standardized testing if theyre unable to assess students amid widespread school closures.

The action will likely provide relief to school leaders around the country. Schools are held accountable for their standardized test scores based on state systems designed through the federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act. However, in recent days, leaders have sounded the alarm on whether or not they would be able to accurately assess students after weeks, or even months, of school closures. Indeed, some schools have closed for the rest of the year, raising questions about how these tests would even be delivered.

Students need to be focused on staying healthy and continuing to learn. Teachers need to be able to focus on remote learning and other adaptations. Neither students nor teachers need to be focused on high-stakes tests during this difficult time, said a statement from U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. Students are simply too unlikely to be able to perform their best in this environment.

The action represents a step forward, after last week , the Department released guidance indicating that it would consider granting states waivers from standardized tests, while noting that standardized tests could still provide useful information. In the latest statement, the Department said states still had to apply for such a one-year waiver, but it had dramatically streamlined the application process.

Education leaders have applauded the move. Many states had already applied for the waivers, and some states had already announced that they would not be testing regardless.