Metro Atlanta school districts are sharpening security for state standardized tests, as thousands of students sit for the high-stakes exams over the coming weeks.
State monitors for the second year in a row will be assigned to schools that raised suspicion because of the number of wrong-to-right erasures on 2010 exams. Teachers in schools of concern won't be allowed to give the tests to their own students and 78 Georgia teachers and administrators who caught the state's attention after a statistical analysis won't be allowed to give the test at all.
The changes began last year after a state probe identified almost 200 Georgia schools where cheating was suspected on the 2009 Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests, given to first through eighth grades. Security was tightened in 2010 and fewer classrooms were flagged for concern on a follow-up analysis released earlier this year. The tests are used to determine whether students met annual academic goals and schools with performance problems can face state sanctions.
In DeKalb, where 29 current and former employees were investigated for possible test protocol violations, the district is taking precautions to ensure test security, including rotating all teachers in all schools during test time. Principals now have to notify the administration if there is a weekend activity in the school and individuals that enter the secure test room will be required to sign a signature log, said spokesman Walter Woods.
"We have changed every key in every secure test room lock and, where possible, there are cameras to see the doors in the rooms," he said. "Every test should be in a secure test room on every campus. It's almost like a piece of evidence. You have to ensure the possession and integrity of the test."
In Atlanta, state monitors will be in place at 16 elementary and middle schools when students take the CRCT starting April 27. The schools were identified as having unusual patterns of erasures on tests taken last spring 2010. Still, the number of affected campuses is down from last year, when Georgia officials required that 58 schools -- the most of any school district in the state -- be monitored because of unusual erasures on 2009 tests. State and federal investigators continue to examine evidence of widespread test tampering in Atlanta Public Schools.
Such concerns also prompted an overhaul of Atlanta’s testing protocol. City school officials adopted a two-person rule for counting test answer sheets and booklets, and minimized the amount of time the sheets and booklets remain in schools after testing. Answer sheets are now sealed in envelopes. The system this year revamped its policy and training related to test security.
“We are mirroring the enhanced security procedures that were successfully implemented last year during the 2010 CRCT administration,” district spokesman Keith Bromery said. Additional security measures include “secure safe rooms in each building” that can be accessed only by the school principal and testing coordinator, Bromery said.
The district has maintained a 24-hour hotline for anyone, including teachers and parents, to report suspected testing irregularities. The number is 877-801-7754.
In Cobb, where testing began last week, spokesman Jay Dillon said no major changes are planned for this year, but the district is strongly encouraging teachers to note any situations where students might have a large number of erasures. Testing also started last week in Clayton, where teachers this year are not permitted to test their own students, except in some cases for students with special needs. The new strategy is to improve testing security for students and educators, said a spokeswoman for Clayton Schools.
The state’s largest district, Gwinnett County Public Schools, will administer the CRCT from April 25-29 to nearly 75,000 students in grades 3-8. The district’s assessment office trains a team of local school test coordinators to provide leadership during the exam. Local schools then train certified staff to administer the test, as well as serve as proctors.
Parents are also doing their part to ensure students are ready.
Catrina Cheeter, a Duluth Middle School mom, hired a tutor to help her 12-year-old son, Micheal Harps, prepare for the CRCT. She is concerned about his math performance. Cheeter said in the final weeks before testing, schools should do more to target students’ weaknesses and provide extra study sessions for those who need it using parent volunteers to help.
“I don’t think everyone is a test-taker,” Cheeter said. “When it comes to standardized tests, it is hard for some to focus.”
Staff reporter Aileen Dodd contributed to this article.
CRCT test dates
Atlanta: April 27 – May 6
Cherokee: April 18-28
Clayton: April 12-19, May 17-19
Cobb: April 12-21
DeKalb: April 21 – May 3
Fulton: April 25 – May 2
Forsyth: April 13-22
Gwinnett: April 25-29
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