Today it was reported that a massive cheating scandal among Atlanta teachers was uncovered:
The report found that teachers, principals and administrators were both helping students on the state’s standardized test, the Criterion-Reference Competency Test, and correcting incorrect answers after students had turned the tests in. Eighty-two educators confessed to the allegations detailed in the report from the Georgia Bureau of Investigations.
Calling it a “dark day” for Atlanta Public Schools, Mayor Kasim Reed said the yearlong investigation “confirms our worst fears … There is no doubt that systemic cheating occurred on a widespread basis in the school system. Further, there is no question that a complete failure of leadership in the Atlanta Public School system hurt thousands of children who were promoted to the next grade without meeting basic academic standards.”
So who’s at fault here? Note this bit at the end of the Time article on the scandal:
Yes, the real problem is not teachers who fail to teach — but “some question” whether laws designed to enforce basic educational standards are compelling teachers to act in a grossly unethical fashion.
