The Atlanta Journal-Constitution made national headlines last summer when it revealed that nearly 200 Atlanta teachers, principals and superintendents attempted to improve student test scores by changing answers on standardized test forms. The paper found evidence of cheating at 44 of Atlanta’s 56 schools, which ending up costing Superintendent Beverly Hall her job.
A new Journal-Constitution investigation reveals that “suspicious test score patterns – which alone is not evidence of cheating – were found in 196 of the nation’s 3,125 largest school districts,” including the Houston and Los Angeles districts, reports The Atlantic.
The districts in question “had enough suspect tests that the odds of the results occurring by chance alone were worse than one in 1,000,” the Journal-Constitution reports.
Some critics question the methodology reporters used to reach their conclusions, while others treat the report as proof that “high stakes testing” is harmful to the nation’s schools.
Actually, state tests only indicate whether or not students are able to read for comprehension and solve grade-appropriate math problems. When teachers and administrators “fix” student test answers, they’re admitting that their students don’t have the basic skills needed to pass such tests or to compete in the work world.
And that’s the biggest scandal of all.
And that’s the biggest scandal of all.
