It’s rare that we agree with the Obama administration, but the president is right on the money when he says “students are spending too much time in the classroom taking tests, many of them unnecessary.”

USA Today reported that Obama urged officials in the country’s schools to take steps to administer fewer and more meaningful exams.

The White House said Saturday the proliferation of testing in the United States — a problem the administration acknowledged it has played a role in — has taken away too much valuable time that could be better spent on learning, teaching and fostering creativity in schools, the newspaper reported.

Any parent with a child in the public school system will likely agree. “Teaching to the test” has long been a criticism of most classrooms.

To curb excessive testing, Obama recommended limiting standardized exams to no more than 2 percent of a student’s instructional time in the classroom, USA Today reported.

‘‘Learning is about so much more than just filling in the right bubble,’’ Obama said in a video posted on Facebook. ‘‘So we’re going to work with states, school districts, teachers and parents to make sure that we’re not obsessing about testing.’’

Obviously some tests are necessary, but they should be a means to an end, instead of being the primary driver of instructional time and teaching methods.

In a 10-page plan, the White House outlined a series of steps to help educators end assessments that are burdensome or not benefiting students or teachers, according to the newspaper.

Kudos to Obama for seeing the wisdom in fewer tests. We only wish he could see the wisdom in making sure the federal government plays a very limited role in education policies.