Georgia schools’ new high-stakes test administered with minor glitches
The new test that replaced the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests in Georgia’s public schools this spring was administered without incident for most elementary school students, but technical glitches disrupted the experience for some.
The test, which was taken by computer in some schools, was a problem for some students who need assistance in reading the questions.
An online screen reader reportedly failed to perform as expected in many instances.
“While many of our districts are testing online without problems, and the issue we are having is mostly isolated to the online screen reader, it is still unacceptable to have even one district having a problem when our testing contract calls for a robust online testing program,” state Superintendent Richard Woods wrote in an email to local superintendents in late April.
He wrote that the state would be holding test contractor CTB/McGraw-Hill “accountable for this mistake, I assure you.”
About the Author
Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.
