Cheating Probe Roils Philadelphia School System - WSJ.com

Cheating Probe Roils Philadelphia School System - WSJ.com



Nearly 140 teachers and administrators in Philadelphia public schools have been implicated in one of the nation's largest cheating scandals, according to district officials who also said Wednesday that they expected to discipline or terminate several school-based employees over the next few weeks in connection with the allegations.
The Pennsylvania attorney general's office also is conducting a criminal investigation into the allegations, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Three principals were fired late last week as part of the probe, which grew out of a 2009 state analysis of questionable erasure patterns on test booklets on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment math and reading exams. The district, which wouldn't discuss the specific allegations, said those involved "violated basic testing integrity, ethical and moral standards."
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Superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia, William Hite Jr. Associated Press
William Hite Jr., who became superintendent of the School District of Philadelphia last year after the alleged cheating took place, said only a fraction of the roughly 8,700 teachers and school-based administrators in the district were involved, but that he was "deeply disappointed."
Standardized exams have been around for decades, but the results have taken on more weight as thousands of districts now use them to evaluate teachers, promote students or close low-performing campuses. Some critics charge that the accountability measures have created pressure cookers for teachers and principals to post high test scores or face penalties. Others say that these tests simply expose teachers and administrators who can't measure up and thus feel the need to cheat.
Jerry Jordan, president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, said he doesn't condone cheating but declined to discuss the recent allegations. He said district officials have focused heavily on test scores and converted low-performing schools to charters, public schools run by independent groups that typically hire nonunion teachers. He said during the years in question, "there was a mood in the district that people knew they have to improve student outcomes or they would be in trouble."
Robert McGrogan, president of the Teamsters, Local 502 Commonwealth Association of School Administrators, questioned the thoroughness of the investigation, and said that, in some cases, the district is relying on flimsy evidence of cheating. "They acted in haste," said Mr. McGrogan, who heads the union that represents school administrators. "The district basically did ready, shoot, aim—instead of ready, aim, fire."
The drama in Philadelphia—a district in such financial straits it almost didn't open on time this past fall—is the latest cheating controversy to engulf public schools. There have been charges of cheating or test-score manipulation in places like Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and El Paso, Texas.
One of the highest-profile cheating scandals occurred in Atlanta, where 178 educators, including Superintendent Beverly L. Hall, allegedly participated in a scheme to boost test scores by altering students' test score booklets. Ms. Hall and 34 teachers and staff were indicted last year on criminal charges ranging from racketeering to influencing witnesses. So far, at least 18 people have pleaded guilty; Ms. Hall has denied the allegations.
The Philadelphia scandal stemmed from a state analysis that eventually came to examine answer sheets at 90 schools statewide, including 53 in the city, from 2009 through 2011. The state inspector general's office investigated 14 Philadelphia schools and found that 69 employees violated testing protocols, the district said. The district is investigating the remaining schools, and it has looked into 19 so far.
A law firm retained by the district cleared three schools of wrongdoing, found inconclusive evidence at three others and evidence of cheating at 13, Mr. Hite said. Twenty administrators, 46 teachers and three other staffers were tagged as violating testing standards. Forty currently work in the district and 29 have resigned, retired or been laid off.
The district has recently implemented tighter testing protocols, such as ensuring tests are kept under lock until they are distributed to students.
Mr. Hite said cheating by adults harms students because schools use test scores to determine which students need remedial help. "There is no circumstance, no matter how pressured the cooker, that adults should be cheating students," he said.
Write to Stephanie Banchero at stephanie.banchero@wsj.com

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