you ain't tryin', or so the old adage goes.
Big scandal this week in Atlanta, where scores of teachers and principals stand accused of changing the answers on their students' standardized test forms. Apparently, the cheating has been going on for nearly 10 years (like, when NCLB started), with groups of perpetrators staying after school or going to people's houses to change answers in masse. The outgoing superintendent claims no knowledge, even though one school had scores that jumped from a 1% pass rate to a 46% pass rate...in one year. Wouldn't someone with a basic understanding of statistics and probability question those results? I guess it's easier to stick heads in the sand.
But Wait, There's More
Atlanta is not the only area with widespread cheating problems. USA Today did a lengthy investigative piece on cheating in DC public schools, while just up the road, Baltimore has had its own cheating issues.
The difference in the two neighboring school systems is that Baltimore is investigating itself, while the DC leadership has seemed to adopt a "what, me worry?" attitude. So, what is really the moral of the story? That if the stakes are high, we should expect adults to cheat along with the kids? That the score is more important than any learning that may be going on? Oy vey!
No comments:
Post a Comment