Arthur Camins has written numerous thoughtful essays about the current ruinous trends in American education.
Here he reflects on some important lessons from the Atlanta cheating scandal.
He writes:
“I’m waiting for the national editorials, leading policy makers and major foundations to speak out honestly about the lessons learned from the Atlanta cheating scandal. I’m waiting for them to change course. But, I am not holding my breath.
“From Enron to Arthur Anderson to the sub-prime lending debacle we have unambiguous evidence of a lethal combination. Unquestioned hierarchy, the arrogance of power and a singular focus on short-term metrics yield no integrity and subsequent cheating. When fear and financial rewards are combined honesty is lost.
“Cheating, especially of the erasure kind, is not new and was certainly known to Beverly Hall. Back in the 1990’s, when she was rising through the ranks, I worked as a District Science Coordinator in New York City. One day during the annual spring testing period we were summoned to the District Office and sent out to proctor testing in the classrooms of teachers who had been identified by the Central Board’s testing division as having an unusually high percentage of erasure marks on previous tests. The pressure was high then even without the threat of job loss or the promise of bonuses. Even then, there was no “speaking truth to power.”
“I was struck in the reporting this morning that Beverly Hall’s reign in Atlanta was characterized by fear. In the end, it is the absence of democracy, the primacy of bureaucracies over learning organizations that allows and encourages cheating. To paraphrase Isaac Asimov from one of his Foundation Trilogy novels, “Despotism is the last refuge of the incompetent.” I think some people rise to power for many reasons and at a certain point realize they really don’t have answers, but do not have the courage to admit it either to themselves or others. That’s when the cover up and self-righteousness take over.”
Arthur
Diane Ravitch's blog 
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Many principals, who are maintained or let go based on pass rates, have gamed the system, The Theater Arts Production Company School (TAPCo) in the Bronx was a recent example. It was he most highly rated high school in the New York City system at the time. (106 our of a 100 point scale.) TAPCo described as ‘a supportive, family-like school’ by insideschools, but those qualities by themselves don’t always lead to success as measured by student achievement rubrics.
This seems as if emphasizing arts and student’s aspirations paid off. You’d like to think that, but maybe not. Maybe you have to make other adjustments.
TAPCo is a case in point. As for myself, I like some of the school’s policies quite a bit. Its “handbook states that no student should fail a class if he or she regularly attends, and that students who miss work should be given ‘multiple opportunities for student success and work revision.’ But they seem to have gone the extra mile and then some; both “[c]urrent and former teachers at the school said that even students who were regularly absent were given passing grades, in some cases with course credits granted by the principal without a teacher’s knowledge. Some students’ records showed credits for courses the school did not offer.”
I don’t want to be too unsympathetic – a principal I knew at Washington Irving a few years ago did much the same thing. While I was far removed from the situation, my best guess is that he did it so a few kids who were semi-traumatized by testing could graduate and go with their lives. I’m pretty sure that was his motivation, but the TAPCo principal, I don’t know. I do know a couple of teachers who were there previously (including one who said “you can justify anything by saying it is good for kids”) and they did not give good reports.
One teacher had classes were 40% of the students had IEPs; there was no special education co-teacher in the class as called for by state law. Others felt enormous pressure to pass students. Another refused comment on “the possibility that someone rigged Regents results” because it was well outside his “purview.” He had not actually seen anything or knew specifically of any special allowances that might have been made in the scoring of those exams. The principal did, however, send e-mails urging, as regards grading, a focus always “on student learning and not on what was taught.” This was in the context of giving grades, “Please remember that tasting success motivates more then fear of failing, a grade on 55% should really only be for those students who do not show up.” She also reiterated the grading policy quoted above, the one I liked.
After the Times’ story broke, there was a difference in tone and in content. By March 2011 she had sent to her staff an e-mail saying
The grading policy is the following: According to state regulations, determinations of passing or failing should be based on student mastery of the learning standards and competencies addressed in the course. Learning standards are aligned with the course learning goals, which should be posted on Atlas curriculum mapping system. Student performance may result in passing grades for all students in a course, if all demonstrate mastery of the learning goals. Our grading policy does not state that all students must pass. It does state that all students must be given multiple opportunities to succeed and revise work to meet the learning goal. There is not a quota of students passing or failing courses.
None of this seems unusual or out of the ordinary. Principals who survive game the system. Sometimes they go the extra mile and this is done for the student’s benefit. Sometimes there are other reasons. Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt: going the extra mile TAPCo ended up with a rating of 106.3. That was out of 100 – the scale goes from 1 to 100, but the school received ‘extra credit,’ something principals who survive are likely to be adept at procuring. Gaming the system is not the same at cooking the books, but principals are tempted either way. Teachers who are dependent on higher test scores are similarly tempted.
Of course, some people do get caught. TAPCo’s Principal was forced to resign in early 2012.
For anyone who wants more information, I go into this in detail in book, https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781475802078. Also, see See Fernanda Santos,” Bronx School’s Top Ranking Stirs Wider Doubts About Rating System,” New York Times, 20 Jan 2011 (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/21/education/21grades.html ) and Anna M. Phillips, “Principal Is Removed Over Findings of Falsified Student Records,” New York Times, 9 March 2012.
Actual quote:
” In the end, it is the absence of democracy, the primacy of bureaucracies over learning organizations that allows and encourages cheating.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/03/30/atlantas-former-schools-chief-charged-under-law-used-against-mafia/?commentID=washingtonpost.com/ECHO/item/1364666193-517-423
This well researched piece reads much like an indictment:
Perdido Street School: Unlike Beverly Hall, Michelle Rhee Is Too Big To Be Brought Down
“There is little doubt in my mind that the USDOE and the DOJ willNOT look into Michelle Rhee’s tenure at DCPS and the evidence of test tampering and cheating because if they find anything, it will a near-fatal bullet into the heart of the test-based teacher accountability/education reform movement”
MUCH more:.
http://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2013/03/unlike-beverly-hall-michelle-rhee-is.html?showComment=1364665939897
Sorry–I really don’t believe that ANYONE is “too big to be brought down.” There must be SOMEONE–a lawyer–out there who, even if he/she wants to make a name for himself/herself, would like to take this on. And–come ON, ACLU! This woman has clearly been involved in violations of the law, and on the civil rights end.
Remember this–“Justice, justice thou shalt prevail.” In these days of faith, let’s have some!
One young TFA alum whose Atlanta school was shuttered as a result of the cheating scandal and whose own record of excellence and gap closing was erased, would go onto run for office–and win–on a platform that principals don’t have enough power. I fear no matter how obvious the lessons are in situations like this there is a huge amount of $$$ devoted to making sure that those lessons aren’t learned. By the way if you can guess the city where the TFA alum is now leveraging his classroom experience I will send you a free Tested to Despair bumper sticker!
I am reminded again of that old chestnut about the difficulty of trying to get a person to understand something when his salary depends on not understanding it.
EduShyster, I want that bumper sticker! I bet the young TFA alum who achieved excellence and closed the gap right before his school was closed for low performance is now on the school board of……..(drum roll) ……..Minneapolis, with the help of his friends and network. Hw long did he live in Minneapolis before he was elected to the school board?
Not even six months.
For everyone–go to testedtodespair@gmail.com Costs $1.25 each.
(Mr. Mell NOT making a profit, but covering printing costs.)
Mr. Mell will send it out promptly! (Reminds me that I have to send you a check, Mr. Mell, but I will also order more! Hope you will have enough & won’t get backlogged after everyone reads this!)
Regarding those bumperstickers: Although it’s nice to cover my costs, I’ll send a sticker to anyone who wants one, and keep sending them out as long as I can afford to. http://www.TestedToDespair.org
edushyster: look forward to your posts here and on your blog.
Keep on testifyin’.
🙂
minneaopolis
sure wish I could spell, already have a tested to despair bumper sticker but could use more
I had five but gave them all away. I will order more for anyone who has dedicated their life to teaching and learning. Happy Easter. Happy Passover.
“Despotism is the last refuge of the incompetent.”
Reminds me of a course in Bureaucracy I took during my undergrad studies. A line that still stays with me is: “People are promoted to their level of incompetence.” Take a look at our government and people in power. They are at their level of incompetence, so despotism is what is left. They don’t know what to really do, so they establish mandates and rules to be followed or else.
Nittany, You are soooooo right!
The problem with what you are saying is that is pretty much what the public ed dismantlers are saying — get rid of the professional ‘bureaucrats’ and replace them with ‘non-bureaucrats.’
What will those non-bureaucrats do? Pave the road to for-profit, virtual schools and data systems. See video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2LJzEuodZw&feature=youtu.be) by David Sirota for a quick account.
Nittany, it happens in the private sector, too, more than you think.
It’s not just despotism. The indictment bases its case on the high pressure Hall put on her schools to achieve high test scores and on the rewards they and she earned from the (fake) high test scores. The language used to describe what Hall did wrong (“no excuses”; “constant pressure”) could just as well be used to describe what the federal government has been doing over the last fifteen years or so. The District Attorney says: “Without her, this conspiracy could not have taken place, particularly in the degree it took place.” You could also say, “Without NCLB, this conspiracy could not have taken place, particularly in the degree it took place.”
We should really see this as an indictment, not of individuals, but of a whole system.
http://literacyinleafstrewn.blogspot.com/2013/03/should-we-indict-bush-boehner-obama-and.html
But it is the individual who allows this to come about by “going along to get along”, in other words being a “good”* team player.
*as in good german
Arendt’s “the banality of evil” comes to mind.
Oh my god, another Nazi reference, this discussion must be going to hell in a hand basket.
An Easter basket, to boot!
I think we need to differentiate between those at the top and those who are scrambling to survive. EVERYONE has a incentive to game the system. Cheating is more than gaming, of course, but I agree totally — this is a systematic problem.
Setting up incentives of this type is going to lead some individuals to at least teach for the test, some others to alter the test. The individuals have their share of blame, but those who set up the system should have anticipated this.
I forgot to mention in an earlier comment (that I wrote about the news coverage on ABC & NBC) on another post about Atlanta & the indictments, that NBC also made it appear that the teachers were cheating for the bonuses. Of course, the REAL story is that most teachers who have been cheating (caught or not) have been doing it to keep their jobs in the face of these very despots who subscribe to “low score & out the door.” Families to house, clothe, feed and health insurance for same.
The coverage on the national news really struck a sour note with me. They intro the piece by calling it the Atlanta “Teachers” and the cheating. Always, always referring to the teachers in a scandal piece. Really the teachers came up with this? Didn’t I read that the Supt. received a bonus for these increased scores? The teachers were only trying to hold onto their jobs. This may be a distinction without a difference when they use the term teacher for all involved but this really grinds me.
This is so true. I will be retiring in June because of such a despotic and small minded principal. I have taken my concerns to the Superintendent and the Network Leader. The teachers are too afraid of losing their jobs to talk, and the only limit to her power is Bloomberg’s rating system.
Good discussion. At my last school, all the teachers watched the teachers close to retirement being harassed, belittled, etc. No one spoke up or did anything. We all buried our heads, because we wanted our jobs. It seemed as though no one understood why the Title I classes were filled with behavior problems and students with learning disabilities. (I’m still not sure most teachers understand that charters are cherry picking.) When we tried to do something about it, we were given no assistance. Just told to go back and try more strategies. Then it was my turn to be harassed, etc. I retired two years early. I knew what was coming next–an improvement plan that the principal would decide I had failed. I guess the principal saves the district money by getting rid of us, even though in AZ our pay is not so great. I retired making $42,500 for at least 10 hours of work per day and sometimes more. What I am more concerned about are the children, who are not receiving the assistance they should be receiving.