Bias claims against panel unfounded

By Ann Cramer

When the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (GOSA) flagged unusual patterns of erasures on the 2009 CRCT tests at 191 schools across the state, most school systems chose to investigate themselves.

In Atlanta, Superintendent Beverly Hall called for a completely independent investigation to get at the root of the issue and let the facts guide her response.

Members of a 15-member blue-ribbon commission — representing a diverse group of business and civic leaders as well as concerned parents — have been working around the clock for months with some of the nation’s top independent test security and audit experts. Their report is due soon, and they are focused on making sure it is accurate and thorough.

These civic leaders should be applauded for taking on this difficult task on behalf of our children and our community.

Instead, a lengthy front-page AJC story last Sunday questioned the impartiality of these dedicated volunteers. The story implied that having a track record of supporting our schools should somehow disqualify members from serving on the commission.

The fact is that every major business worth its salt in this town strongly supports the local school system, because it is in their interest to do so, both in producing a talented future work force and in recruiting competent individuals from around the nation and world to bring their skills here. It is absurd to suggest, therefore, that there are “connections” between prominent businesses and Atlanta Public Schools. Both would be remiss if there were not.

Nor does a contractual relationship with a firm preclude skilled and competent members of that firm from acting independently in their role as members of the commission.

Right from the start, the commission has insisted on an objective, independent review of GOSA’s erasure analysis. The Atlanta Public Schools superintendent and board chair first called for an independent review. That review was placed in the hands of the Atlanta Education Fund, which partnered with the Metro Atlanta Chamber to identify prominent civic and business leaders to retain an objective and independent firm to conduct the investigation.

That “supporters” of the school system spearheaded the review does not create a conflict of interest, nor should it compromise findings that we haven’t even seen. It is precisely because the Atlanta Education Fund and chamber “support” Atlanta Public Schools that they would want to ferret out testing improprieties.

“Supporting” the school system and its students means making sure the system’s testing procedures and protocols are adhered to, that the integrity of the testing process is above reproach and that testing data provide a clear indication of schools’ and students’ performance and needs.

It also made good practical sense for Atlanta Public Schools personnel to conduct interviews with test-takers from schools with only “moderate” testing concerns. Interviewers were thoroughly trained and prepped by KPMG professionals to conduct interviews in the “moderate” schools, a process that allowed the blue-ribbon commission to control costs.

Finally and most egregiously in my opinion, the AJC has taken the unprecedented step of undermining and discrediting a report they haven’t even seen.

This can only serve to create a public atmosphere of suspicion and prejudgment, based on the preposterous supposition that some of our area’s top business and civic leaders, each of whom has a long track record of outstanding community service, are not to be trusted.

Let’s stay focused on what really matters here — allowing the commission to complete its important work, and doing what’s right for our children.

Ann Cramer, Director Americas, IBM Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs, is a member of the Metro Atlanta Chamber Education Committee and sits on the board of Project GRAD, which has received funding from APS.