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Jul 23, 2009 4:47 pm US/Central
DISD School's TAKS Cheating Scandal Widens
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
The TAKS cheating scandal at Lang Middle School in Dallas is worse than first thought.
Earlier this year, it was revealed that the Dallas Independent School District and the Texas Education Agency (TEA) were investigating evidence of cheating found on math TAKS tests among Lang eighth graders.
The TEA called it the "worst breach of security" in the history of the TAKS.
Because their TAKS results were suspect, 400 Lang students were told they had to retake the test in June or risk not being promoted to the ninth grade.
The results are now in, and DISD officials say the passing rate dropped by 36 percent.
In April, 79.4 percent of the students passed.
But just 43.7 percent passed when they retook it in June.
Only 300 students showed up to retake the test, the district says. But it's the 36 percent drop in the passing rate that concerns officials.
DISD spokesman Jon Dahlander says those students who failed can be promoted to ninth grade only if a school review panel allows it.
In addition, state investigators have found even more evidence of cheating among Lang's results.
State education officials say they have now found indications of cheating in the results of the reading TAKS taken by Lang seventh graders in April.
Because a passing grade on the seventh grade reading TAKS is not required to advance to eighth grade, those students will not have to retake the test.
DISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa says it is possible the current investigation could lead to criminal charges. "There are possible sanctions, sanctions that are criminal whenever you're involved in these kinds of matters," says Hinojosa. The superintendent says, if the investigation indicates that laws where broken, that information will be turned over to the Dallas County District Attorney's office.
School district officials have maintained that adults, not sutdents, were responsible for the irregularities and say the results of the initial math TAKS test taken by eighth graders in April were suspect. "They weren't valid, they weren't accurate, they weren't truthful," explained Hinojosa. "That's the biggest shame because these students didn't know the material that we thought that they knew."
Hinojosa said he does not yet know who is responsible for the cheating, but the additional evidence about Lang's seventh grade results shows that the cheating was not an isolated event. He also said it must have taken place above the teaching level.
"I think that it is appalling," Hinojosa said. "And we are concerned and we're going to get to the bottom of this and we're going to hold people accountable. That's why we have to be fair in our investigation and we have to get to the truth, whatever the truth is."
On Thursday, DISD officials confirmed that someone at the school erased and changed answers on the tests. The district says several adults are being questioned about possible cheating that took place during the exams.
Dallas ISD board trusee Ron Price explains what the district is doing to investigate the case.
"You talk to all the individuals responsible for taking the test. You talk to the kids. Did someone pass you an eraser? Did someone ask you to change A to B? You just do a proper investigation and that's how we find out the information."
Many are asking why teachers would change the answers, replacing them with correct ones? School district officials say there is money in the form of incentive bonuses up to $8,000 from a federal grant involved for core subject teachers.
Last year 460 DISD teachers were rewarded for student acheivemtnts to the tune of $2.15 million dollars, leaving educators to ask if the bonuses could be the motivation.
"Because people want to look good. They want their kids to do well but if that means additional money in their pocket, especially in the ecobomic climate that our country is in right now, who could say that they would always be on the up and up" says Rena Honea, president of the Alliance AFT teachers union.
Ron Price says the scandal has hurt the students of Lang Middle School the most. "There's physical child abuse. This was academic child abuse and regardless, it's child abuse and it must be prosecuted."
Eighth grade students who failed the June re-test are still waiting to see if they will move on to ninth grade for the upcoming school year. Students will have to go before a grade placement review committee this summer.
The district is currently notifying students who did not pass the re-test.
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