Posted on 03/22/2006 8:38:55 PM PST by blam
Report: Principal Exposed School Cheating
Thursday March 23, 2006 4:01 AM
By GEOFF MULVIHILL
Associated Press Writer
CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) - Six months after Joseph Carruth became principal of one of the city's high schools, one of his bosses gave him step-by-step instructions on how he should cheat to make sure students got passing scores on state standardized tests, according to a report.
In a story based on court documents and interviews with law enforcement and education officials, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in Wednesday's editions how Carruth has been on a nearly two-year behind-the-scenes odyssey to expose cheating in the schools, at one point wearing a wire for investigators.
Carruth did not agree to an interview with the newspaper and did not return a message left Wednesday by The Associated Press.
According to the newspaper, Luis Pagan, the assistant superintendent at Camden's well-regarded Charles Brimm Medical Arts High School, told Carruth to open a shrink-wrapped package with copies of the 2005 state High School Proficiency Assessment and use it to make a key to be used to correct some students' answers.
Carruth refused to take part in the cheating, according to the newspaper.
Carruth took his concerns about a year ago to investigators at the Camden County Prosecutor's Office and last month to the state Education Department.
Other school officials have denied the cheating.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Cheating in New Jersey? I am absolutely shocked.
I'm a teacher; I would love to bust my district on misbehavior. Who do you call? I'll wear a wire.
Homeschool Ping!
Could this be how NJ schools earned a ranking of Fourth Best in the country...?
Gotta hand it to this principal for helping to expose cheating, assuming his story is true.
Another article where we hear it first about our own country from overseas. This should have been splashed all over the headlines in this country. The schools are shooting themselves in the foot by passing kids like this.
I've got to tell you..I teach in a southern New Jersey suburban High school and we go to EXTREME measures to insure the integrity of the test. (And believe it or not, there ARE conservative teachers here; our Junior ROTC program is very big.)
Unfortunately, this Camden city school's actions is indicative of the whole mess that IS Camden. It is the most violent city in America and its schools have been corrupt for decades, yet the state keeps giving them more money that gets taken by graft (while successful schools like ours get no state money despite the fact that we send in more taxes than Camden)
Of course, Jon Corzine is going to tax us more than ever while the Camden Democratic machine keeps this motto alive: New Jersey and corruption...perfect together.
L
Be thankful for that. Schools-any goernment units- that get mony from a higher government unit get rules and requirements with the money that often require the expenditure of local funds in excess of what the locals intended for things the locals don't want. If they give you money to hire another teacher for a particular purpose you find that you are also required to hire 3 administrators on your own dime and put in new, perhaps undesired, facilities and so on and on because the requirements increase with time even if the money doesn't . Every dollar of such money probably costs the locals 1.50 at least, additional funds and they lose control of what and how they teach and how their own money is spent.
http://www.nj1015.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=2247&z=1
Standardized Test Security Breaches Isolated
Security breaches involving standardized tests at eight schools in Camden and Lacey Township are being called "isolated cases" that will have no impact on other students throughout the state. New Jersey's Acting Assistant Education Commissioner Jay Doolan says mistakes in administering the test are rare.
"Because we have been doing this for a while, most everyone understand the serious nature of this and its rare that we have this type of situation," says Doolan. "Security around the administration of the test is very clear. We have training on this, and as well all of the securty procedures are in writing. The test booklets are not to be unpacked. They are shrink wrapped and that's not to be dealt with until the day of the test."
The Department of Education has a fall back test to administer if there's a security breach at your kid's school, like someone unsealing a test booklet before they are supposed to.
Because of a security breach, the entire eighth grade class at Lacey Township Middle School must
retake a portion of a state standardized test. One student glanced at the language arts and literacy portion of the Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment prematurely on the second day of the four-day test. The student shared the information with others.
A breach in state procedures prompted a halt in standardized math testing at seven Camden elementary schools on Tuesday. The breach occurred when district officials opened sealed math test booklets a day early to enter students' identification codes on the cover, according to a statement released by the district.
Anyone see a problem here?
Very very true...
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