Schools with suspicious scores get rewards

By Heather Vogell

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Fourteen schools with suspicious state test scores will still pocket thousands of dollars of federal money as a reward for their performance, state records and an Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis show.

Last month, the AJC reported dramatic test score changes at 19 elementary schools statewide that, in some cases, were statistically less likely than winning the lottery.

State officials announced last week that 14 of those schools won cash and recognition as recipients of Distinguished School awards. The schools — 10 in Atlanta and four outside the metro area — received a combined $87,570. The money can be used for a range of items, from supplies or field trips to cash prizes for school staff.

Three schools were forced earlier this year to relinquish their 2008 Distinguished School money after the state found strong evidence of cheating on standardized tests.

The state awards the money according to a complex federal formula that considers schools’ poverty levels and the number of years they consecutively meet federal standards, or make “Adequate Yearly Progress.” AYP is based largely on state test scores.

The 14 schools in question this year each earned between $712 and $9,810, with another receiving a certificate but no cash.

If the state documents cheating at any of them, it could take the money back, said Matt Cardoza, a spokesman for the Georgia Department of Education. The Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (OSA) is analyzing all state test scores through eighth grade and plans to audit where it suspects test tampering may have occurred.

“We do have to go through that process,” Cardoza said. “We will work with OSA to make sure schools that may have cheated aren’t rewarded.”

The AJC published an investigative story in October that showed some schools posted highly unlikely scores on the state Criterion-Referenced Competency Test between last spring and this spring.

The CRCT assesses Georgia students’ academic skills through eighth grade. The AJC compared how students in grades 3 through 5 did in 2008 with how they did in 2009.

The analysis showed some classes made statistically improbable jumps, or drops, from one year to the next. In a few cases, the change was so extreme that the chances of it happening naturally were less than one in a billion.

This summer, the state withdrew Distinguished School money it had given three schools for last year’s test results after a state investigation triggered by another AJC analysis found cheating likely took place. The state Board of Education voted to reclaim the awards, invalidate the scores and reverse the three schools’ status as having met Adequate Yearly Progress.

Budgets filed with the state for the schools showed Parklane Elementary in Fulton County planned to spend its $8,104 on supplies such as paper, pens and books. Deerwood Academy in Atlanta pledged its $842 for a local field trip.

Atherton Elementary in DeKalb, however, divided its $10,130 among school staff, sending each a $142 check.

The state board approved this year’s winners last week. Superintendent Kathy Cox praised the hundreds recognized as Distinguished Schools. Not all earned money.

“These 896 schools don’t accept excuses,” she said in a prepared statement. “There are high standards for students and high expectations for teachers. These schools are focused and determined — and they are getting results.”

Cardoza said Cox did not have additional comments regarding schools that won money and had scores in question, but he added that the state is diligently checking the validity of all scores this year.

The achievement office, which is independent of the education department, plans to begin auditing schools based on its findings after Thanksgiving, Executive Director Kathleen Mathers said.

In response to recent questions about suspicious scores, Atlanta Public Schools announced it would convene a panel of experts to review the schools’ test results. Last week, spokeswoman Su Yeager said in an e-mail that the district is “in discussions” with someone to lead the panel. The district expects to announce more details about the panel next week.

On Friday, the state released another set of recognitions — the 2009 Georgia Schools of Excellence. One of the schools with improbable score gains, Atlanta’s West Manor Elementary, was among those lauded for being in the top 10 percent statewide in reading and math test performance. The state expects to honor West Manor and the other recipients at a banquet in February.

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Did they really earn the honors?

Of the schools with suspicious test scores, 14 received cash as Distinguished Schools; one received a certificate only.

District/SchoolAward

Carroll County

Whitesburg Elementary School $712

Dougherty County

West Town Elementary School $9,810

Muscogee County

Rigdon Road Elementary School $1,068

Tift County

Omega Elementary School $712

Atlanta Public Schools

Perkerson Elementary

Usher Elementary Schoo l$7,848

Bethune Elementary School $7,848

Venetian Hills Elementary School $7,848

West Manor Elementary School $712

Peyton Forest Elementary School $7,848

Benteen Elementary School $7,848

Capitol View Elementary School $9,810

Dunbar Elementary School $7,848

F. L. Stanton Elementary School $9,810

Toomer Elementary School $7,848

Source: Georgia Department of Education