ISTEP breaches spur closer look at testing
Rising concerns about cheating on Indiana's standardized tests have prompted the state Department of Education to keep closer tabs on how the test is administered, including evaluating the number of erased answers for clues about whether the results may have been manipulated by teachers.
The number of investigations into testing irregularities increased to 19 this year, according to The Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne. Those include the biggest breach ever of the ISTEP+ test in March, when an eighth-grade essay question was posted on Facebook. More than 80,000 students around the state had their results on that item tossed in a case that involved teachers in three districts.
In other cases, teachers allegedly used live test items to practice with students, created practice problems that matched test questions, taught lessons specifically geared to test questions or told students to change their answers.
Educators say the rising suspicions may reflect a heightened importance for the test scores, which now affect teacher pay,
The number of investigations into testing irregularities increased to 19 this year, according to The Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne. Those include the biggest breach ever of the ISTEP+ test in March, when an eighth-grade essay question was posted on Facebook. More than 80,000 students around the state had their results on that item tossed in a case that involved teachers in three districts.
In other cases, teachers allegedly used live test items to practice with students, created practice problems that matched test questions, taught lessons specifically geared to test questions or told students to change their answers.
Educators say the rising suspicions may reflect a heightened importance for the test scores, which now affect teacher pay,