TRENTON – Some state education officials are sounding the alarm after midyear assessments showed three of every eight New Jersey public school students scored below grade level in math and English language arts. The coronavirus pandemic upended education, pushing classes online at all schools for three months last spring and still continuing more than a year later at a handful of schools. It also messed with New Jersey’s statewide standardized tests, which were canceled both last and this school year. All students will take a new ‘Start Strong’ assessment when they return next fall. Districts were also directed to administer locally selected assessments this past winter and report results to the state, and the results underscore the challenges posed by the pandemic: