Test Scores

The problem of cheating on standardized tests that was recently uncovered in the Baltimore City Public Schools is apparently another in a long list of testing scandals that have plagued school districts across the country. Some might argue that these episodes provide further proof of sociologist Donald T. Campbell's observation made more than three decades ago. "Campbell's law," as it is known, states that the more a quantitative measure is used for social decision-making, the more it will be subject to corruption pressures that distort the social process it is intended to monitor.

The Baltimore principals union is calling for schools CEO Andrés Alonso to pay back thousands of dollars in bonuses he received in years that schools were later found to have cheated on state tests. The request comes as a contract, released through a Public Information Act request, names three schools that have not previously been publicly linked to cheating suspicions: Sinclair Lane Elementary, Rayner Browne Elementary/Middle and William Pinderhughes Elementary. The schools join Abbottston Elementary, alleged to have cheated in 2009, in an independent investigation.

Speaking as a retired independent middle school principal with 32 years of service, it was most disturbing to read The Sun's editorial that appeared to search for satisfactory criteria that would "tie a teacher's pay to performance rather than seniority" ("Baltimore schools' uncharted waters," Dec. 21). In my opinion, there is no such method existing which would truly judge a student's inherent scholastic achievements since a tremendous difference definitely exists between the more able, stable students living in a corresponding environment than the weaker ones living in a less caring and non-attentive surroundings.

Baltimore teachers are voicing concern about a controversial program at nine city schools aimed at reducing out-of-school student suspensions. The program rewards teachers and principals with cash bonuses of up to $9,500 for keeping troublesome or disruptive students in class rather than sending them home on suspension, and the union worries that such financial incentives might blind some administrators and staff to bad behavior or even cause them...

Maryland should be proud of leading the nation with a law that bars schools from automatically giving test scores and student contact information to military recruiters. Students do not need pressure from recruiters for making a career choice that could harm them, perhaps even take their life or cause them to have post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a condition that can be worse than death. PTSD could cause perpetual depression and/or suicide. There are more life affirming career choices that we should encourage our youth to pursue.

The recent school test scores were depressing ("Stuck in place," July 11). I attended school during the Great Depression and into the early 1940s when those who did find jobs were often victims of frequent layoffs. In that environment, children had to be raised in poverty, too. There was no television and a single radio, perhaps an RCA Victor "Victrola," was in the house. Libraries were few and far between. Students walked to school in all kinds of weather or rode a streetcar to distant locations.

Lots of people buy a home as much for the school district it's in as for the property itself. If you're in that category, here are some rankings right up your alley. 1) Elementary and middle schools in the metro area (city and suburbs) ordered by the share of their students who passed the state's Maryland School Assessment test 2) Those schools ordered by the share of students scoring at the advanced level on the test The Sun's Patrick Maynard put the rankings together.

The performance of Baltimore's first- and second-grade pupils fell significantly in reading and math on a national standardized test, mirroring the drops on statewide assessments this year. The results show that the academic performance of even the city's youngest students has declined, in some cases by as much as 6 percentage points in a single grade and subject. While a news release sent late Friday emphasized that students are still performing above the national average in some subjects, the system acknowledged that the test scores are a "call to action.

The best elementary schools in the state come in all sizes and areas, from a small school filled with low-income students in the far reaches of Western Maryland to a midsize one in a wealthy neighborhood of Anne Arundel County. Of the 874 elementary schools in the state, Crellin Elementary, a schoolhouse nestled in a coal mining area that has amassed a collection of prizes for leadership, environmental teaching and character education, is the school with the highest pass rate on the Maryland School Assessment.

Most respondents to The Evening Sun's survey questions yesterday agreed with the state school board's decision to make public the results of a new statewide test. The criterion-reference tests are designed to measure how well the schools teach and will be given for the first time in May.Of 288 callers, 250 (87 percent) said they believe that the test scores should be made public, while 38 callers (13 percent) said they do not think that should be the case. Of 289 callers, 238 (82 percent)

The Maryland State Department of Education has made a new round of revisions to its plans under the federal Race to the Top program to tie student achievement to educator effectiveness, but the U.S. Department of Education has expressed concern about the state's ability to implement the radically new system that is due to be rolled out this fall. In a letter sent to state officials last month, USDE approved a series of tweaks the state has made to its application, the majority of which altered how much weight will be given to various student achievement measures that will account for half of an educators' evaluation.

Op-ed contributor Carlene Buccino's argument against the objectivity of SAT scores is compelling but flawed ("The best test scores money can buy," Dec. 13). There is a robust literature that supports the use of SAT scores in the admissions process. Generally, institutions of higher learning are well-versed regarding literature that suggests the cultural, socio-economic and gender biases of the SAT and other standardized exams. In fact, some institutions tier the SAT bottom-line in adherence to the literature.

Americans think we live in a meritocracy where hard work can take you from rags to riches. Access to a great education can be an escape from the cyclical poverty found in Baltimore and other major cites. Attending an elite university is particularly helpful. Studies show that graduates of elite institutions - and Ivy League schools in particular - are more successful than graduates from other institutions. Admission into the Ivy League and other top schools is also considered to be meritocratic.

Baltimore schools CEO Andrés Alonso is right to bring in outside experts to determine whether some of the city's recent test scores were tainted by cheating. The issue of integrity in school test results is paramount in Baltimore, given the district's history of low achievement, and even more so now that teacher advancement and promotion will be tied in part to test scores. So it's somewhat curious that the union representing city school principals is criticizing a re-examination of the test scores as a waste of money; the school department reportedly is paying a leading data forensics company, Caveon Test Security, $275,000 to conduct the investigation.

The president of the Baltimore principals union has vowed to protest recent actions he called "vindictive" and "capricious" after city schools CEO Andres Alonso demoted 15 principals whose schools had low scores on state tests. In a memo obtained by The Baltimore Sun and sent to all city administrators, Jimmy Gittings said that the school system cited declining test scores for some of the demotions, though Alonso said in a recent "State of the Schools" address that he did not want "the work to be about MSA scores.

Baltimore's school system has been in transition over the past five years, and the next five will see more "stops, starts and uncertainties," with a newfound focus on the classroom, schools CEO Andrés Alonso told principals Tuesday. Against the backdrop of charts and graphs, Alonso led the system's leaders through the achievements they've produced since he arrived in 2007: test scores and graduation rates up, suspensions and dropouts down, and new professional contracts hailed as the most progressive in the country.

Baltimore's ambitious Tesseract school privatization experiment has failed to significantly improve elementary school student performance in the two years since Education Alternatives Inc. took over the schools, test results released yesterday show.Overall average scores for the eight elementary schools this spring declined in reading and rose slightly in math, compared with results from spring 1992, before EAI took over the schools.The results drew radically different interpretations from opponents and defenders of EAI, a for-profit company based in Minneapolis.

Most of the attention after the release of results from this year's state exams for elementary and middle school students has focused on Baltimore City, where scores appear to have leveled off after years of rapid gains. But Baltimore isn't the only school system where progress has slowed. It's a statewide problem, which is why Maryland's new superintendent of schools, Lillian Lowery, has made figuring out how to get the ball rolling again one of her highest priorities. Ms. Lowery, who previously served as state school superintendent in Delaware before taking over Maryland's top education job July 1, recently visited The Sun to talk about the kinds of improvements she believes are needed to keep up the momentum for Maryland students.

Lots of people buy a home as much for the school district it's in as for the property itself. If you're in that category, here are some rankings right up your alley. 1) Elementary and middle schools in the metro area (city and suburbs) ordered by the share of their students who passed the state's Maryland School Assessment test 2) Those schools ordered by the share of students scoring at the advanced level on the test The Sun's Patrick Maynard put the rankings together.