Geez. What a disappointment. After months of hard work by a team led by Dr. Rayne Sperling and Dr. Jonna Kulikowich, researchers at Penn State, a report examining the quality of school districts’ alternative assessments for high school proficiency was released. That report was then covered so badly by WTAJ in State College that I had to bring it to your attention. The report can be found HERE, and the TV report on it can be found HERE.
1) This was not a study of “test scores and graduation rates at every high school in Pennsylvania” but a review of the local assessments that each school district provides to students who do not pass the PSSA’s in 11th or 12th grade. These assessments are required by the State Board of Education, and districts must develop them. Your news report never even mentioned that these assessments exist and were the focus of this study.
2) “Giving kids diplomas even if they don’t make the grade.” This is not true. The districts are graduating kids who have passed the district’s local assessments. What researchers found is that many of these assessments are not aligned with current standards for math or reading, and/or may not yield a valid measure of assessment.
3) “18 districts held back kids that didn’t pass a state test.” This is completely false. Researchers found that 18 districts offered local assessments that were valid in standards and practice. This study did not collect data regarding individual graduation decisions in any district.
4) “400 districts allowed kids to get their diplomas despite failing scores.” This is not what the study discovered. Again, they did not collect data regarding students, their graduation decisions, or their test scores.
5) “400 districts allowed kids to get their diplomas despite failing scores. That came out to 56,000 students.” This is not an accurate reflection of what the 56,000 students are. The press release, which I distributed yesterday explains clearly what this number is:
“The Pennsylvania State Board of Education requires that districts offer a local assessment that provides an alternative method for students to graduate if they do not successfully meet proficiency of standards through the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) 11th grade administration and 12th-grade retake. In 2007, more than 56,000 Pennsylvania students graduated with the local assessments as one requirement to earn a high-school diploma.”
Clearly, the 56,000 students were graduated statewide using these assessments, and represent all districts in the state, not just the 400 you reference in your report.
6) “Penn State recently found” – Although this study was conducted by Penn State faculty, they used expert panels of educators from across Pennsylvania to determine whether these assessments were aligned with standards.
7) “If they still can’t pass, they are not supposed to graduate.” This is not true. As stated in the quote above, school districts are required to provide an alternative assessment to help students graduate.
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