NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — After gauging reaction from parents, the city’s Department of Education has decided to reverse course on an idea to drop 50 “forbidden” words to avoid on school assessment tests.

Companies creating the tests were being advised to stay away from a range of topics and specific words. Some of the words the DOE wanted left out included: “divorce,” “evolution,” “poverty,” “alcohol” and “abuse.”

The DOE said the list was a recommendation and not an all-out ban.

Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott previously said the DOE was simply giving guidance to the test developers.

“So we’re not an outlier in being politically correct. This is just making sure that test makers are sensitive in the development of their tests,” Walcott said last week.

The department released a statement saying they would “continue to advise companies to be sensitive to student backgrounds” and “avoid unnecessary distractions that could invalidate test scores.”

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