Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam's TNReady listening tour will make a stop in the Chattanooga area Tuesday.
The tour launched Aug. 24 with six stops announced across the state to address how the state can improve testing and assessments.
Haslam's announcement came as the state Department of Education has taken a variety of steps to address ongoing TNReady fiascoes. Delivery of TNReady has been fraught with issues since the test was first launched in 2015.
This spring, students and educators saw a new batch of issues, including problems with the test's vendor, Questar, a possible hack that was later disproved and even a severed fiber-optic cable that halted testing across Middle Tennessee.
The meetings, intended to allow educators, students and administrators to give their feedback, have been greeted with some criticism.
The first stop was Friday at Halls Elementary School in Knox County, where Haslam and state officials were confronted by teachers who accused the governor of setting the meeting at a deliberately inconvenient time for educators, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.
Haslam and Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said that was not the case, but Hamilton County's Education Association President Jeanette Omarkhail is worried that Tuesday's meeting is also inconvenient for educators.
"The idea is good, the way it's coming about is not. Teachers across the state are wondering why we aren't being included in this," she said. "It doesn't make sense, they are doing this as far out of town as possible. Teachers are not all out of school."
To ensure her members are able to voice their concerns, Omarkhail sent a survey out to the teachers union's members and plans on compiling feedback prior to Tuesday's roundtable.
"I'm trying to do my part and be prepared and allow teachers to speak and have their voices heard," she said.
The meeting is slated for 4 p.m. at Soddy-Daisy High School, 618 Sequoyah Access Road.
Contact staff writer Meghan Mangrum at mmangrum@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.