The Ohio Department of Education is starting work on a new series of student tests to be administered in the upcoming school year. State schools Superintendent Richard Ross says his department has contracted with the American Institutes for Research on developing the assessments in English, Language Arts and math for the 2015-16 school year. Ross says the tests will be in place in time to guide teachers in classroom instruction, and the content will align to state learning standards. Ohio already uses A-I-R to deliver social studies and science exams. After an outcry from parents, the state has dropped and defunded tests from the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Career, or PARCC. A new law requires replacement tests to be shorter and to returns results faster.