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Hold The Line

by Bobby L. Hickman

July 1, 2008

P arents concerned about the low CRCT test scores received by Georgia middle school students shouldn't panic, says Dr. Steve Dolinger, president of the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE).

"Reason for concern, no doubt," he says. "Time to panic, absolutely not."

The state Education Department has come under fire over how it handled the Criterion-Referenced Competency Test after thousands of sixth- and seventh- grade students failed the social studies and math tests. Superintendent Kathy Cox has thrown out the social studies test results, saying students' poor performance on the test indicates serious questions about the process.

Dr. Steve Dolinger

Dolinger says the scores in both social studies and math are areas for concern, "but for differing reasons." He says the extremely high failure rate of 70 percent to 80 percent in social studies indicates one or more of several possibilities:
• Are there issues with the recently introduced curriculum and standards?
• Are the new tests properly aligned with the new curriculum?
• Was the training teachers received on the new curriculum lacking in some areas?

"There may be other factors involved with the social studies results and it is incumbent upon the Department of Education to thoroughly review all these areas," Dolinger adds. "It appears that they have already undertaken that task."

The 40 percent failure rate on the eighth-grade math test, while less surprising, also is a concern. When there is a change to the curriculum and related test it can generally be expected to see a drop in performance.

Dolinger says that when the third-grade reading test changed in 2006, the results fell by about 10 points. "While a drop was anticipated for math, the drop was higher than most probably expected.

"The current performance level for eigth-grade math is more in line with national tests such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress which has been much lower over the past several years than our CRCT scores," he says. "Our new math curriculum appears to be more rigorous and the tests appear to be more aligned to that curriculum. The area of concern is the question about the level of support and training for teachers across Georgia."

GPEE is a non-profit organization that works for improved education across Georgia. "Over the past several years our state has put into place many of the puzzle pieces needed to provide a first-class education," Dolinger says. "Graduation rates and student achievement numbers have started to come up in many areas so there is reason for hope.

"By closely looking at these most recent test results, we can strengthen our processes and expect progressively greater outcomes in the future."

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