This is what I’ve heard about one student in the Northern part of Delaware. This child went to a charter school that has been in the news a bit lately. Getting the ultimate score of 4 on both English and Math on the DCAS test, this student transferred to their local school district. Upon taking the SRI reading test, it was very quickly discovered this student cannot even read. The worst part: this is a student with disabilities.
Apparently this student also took the DCAS with NO accommodations. How is this even possible? Unless… Yes, this charter school is a cheat. They found a way to make their scores even better for special needs students. Their big mistake though was not doing the same for all students, and they were questioned about it.
This is why the high-stakes standardized testing game needs to be eliminated as any source of proficiency for students. If a school can rig the game and an honest school doesn’t, it changes the entire landscape. Especially if those with a vested interest in certain schools helped to design the test. So while we have schools doing the right thing, and they are laid out on the floor for doing so, other schools have been cheating for years and unless they have other major problems flowing like water through a burst pipe, they get away with it.
I do believe there are honest charter schools as well. Ones that work their ass off when they get low scores one year and only increase marginally the next but they are saved from the executioner’s axe. But the ones that are cheating, and I know who a few of you are, you are the most vile disgusting scum in the state. It’s not because you look better on paper. It’s not because the DOE and Markell want to give you a ticker-tape parade when your scores are released. It’s not because you narrowed the gap among different subgroups. It’s because you are failing our students. The students aren’t failures, you are. You have been given a sacred trust, and you abuse that trust every chance you get. These are human beings, not human capital. They are children. They are not to be used as pawns in your power games.
This is why we have priority schools. This is why so many special needs children suffer so much in this state. How can any student in any of these cheating schools ever be given a fair shot in life? How can parents of charter school students accuse public school districts of giving free passes to students when some of these very same schools permanently damage students? How in God’s name will any of these “proficient” students feel when they take the Smarter Balanced Assessment and fail miserably?
I encourage anyone who knows about these cheating scandals to come forward. Cause if I expose you, it won’t be pretty. I’m not sure why I’m assigning myself the job the DOE should be doing in the first place, but hey, that’s life. There has to be a place in hell for anyone who would use children like this. I think there should be legislation put forth that anyone involved in a cheating scandal like this should be prosecuted and do prison time if found guilty. Does this sound too harsh? Imagine how the poor student at a new school who thought they were doing good in school feels. Being told you can’t read. How do the parents feel? Thinking their child is doing well only to find out it was all a lie and their child is most likely years behind their peers? This is a rape of the mind, of the soul.
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