THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 21, 1996 TAG: 9604190174
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 32 lines
How tragic that some English teachers at I.C. Norcom High School thought it was OK to give 11th-graders the answers to standardized Tests of Achievement and Proficiency. How sad that those who should be serving as mentors for students have sent the message that cheating is acceptable.
Students would not benefit in any way from the reported scheme. Capable students don't need the answers. Other students would get false hopes that could set them up for more serious failures in the future.
The only possible beneficiaries would be the teachers who would claim credit for bettering the scores.
Sadly, the incident doesn't do much to create respect for schoolteachers, either among the students or in the public eyes.
The School Board has no choice but to fire the teachers and anyone else involved in the testing subterfuge.
Students must learn the hardest lesson of all: You can't break the rules without paying the consequences.
And the public must have confidence that test scores in the future are valid reflections of what a school is accomplishing. by CNB