School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings | Seattle Times Newspaper

Local News | School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings | Seattle Times Newspaper:

School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings

School officials stand by test scores despite paper's findings

An investigation by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has identified about 200 school districts, including four in Washington state, that recently reported test-score gains the article describes as extremely improbable.

By Brian M. Rosenthal

Seattle Times education reporter

RELATED

• The Atlanta-Journal Constitution investigation

Washington state scores

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution analyzed test scores in school districts across the country.

The newspaper's methodology, which has been widely debated, included an analysis of scores between 2008 and 2011. The newspaper separated the scores into "classes" made up of all students in a given grade at a given school and used a formula to predict what each class's average test score should have been each year. If a class' actual scores were far off from the prediction, the class was flagged. Having 5 percent of classes flagged was "normal," the newspaper said.

Districts with scores identified as 'suspicious'

Kennewick School District: 12.9 percent flagged in 2008, 11.4 percent in 2009, 11.8 percent in 2010 and 7.9 percent in 2011

Mukilteo School District: 19 percent flagged in 2008, 8.3 percent in 2009, 6.7 percent in 2010 and 6.9 percent in 2011

Sumner School District: 9 percent flagged in 2008, 6.8 percent in 2009, 15.9 percent in 2010 and 13.6 percent in 2011

Tahoma School District: 15 percent flagged in 2008, 20 percent in 2009, 5 percent in 2010 and 0 percent in 2011

Other districts

Bellevue School District: 9.1 percent flagged in 2008, 13.6 percent in 2009, 8 percent in 2010 and 6.3 percent in 2011

Seattle Public Schools: 5.9 percent flagged in 2008, 3 percent in 2009, 6 percent in 2010 and 4.2 percent in 2011

Spokane Public Schools: 3.4 percent flagged in 2008, 7.3 percent in 2009, 4.2 percent in 2010 and 7.6 percent in 2011

Tacoma Public Schools: 4.2 percent flagged in 2008, 5.3 percent in 2009, 4.9 percent in 2010 and 6.3 percent in 2011

Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (bit.ly/HLZlGy)

Read the investigation

See how your school district did in The Atlanta-Journal Constitution's analysis: bit.ly/GNrxOW

Atlanta Journal-Constitution Video

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The four Washington school districts were Mukilteo, Sumner, Tahoma and Kennewick.

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