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Writing Test Scores Delayed At Two Schools School Coding Error May Have Diverted Some Kenrose, Scales Results To Other Districts

Source: The Tennessean -- Publication date: 2000-05-22

FRANKLIN The scores from a state writing test are coming in late for a group of fourth-graders at Kenrose and Scales elementaries. `I can't say an exact date when they will be delivered,` said Pam Hobbins, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Education. `There were some that were mailed out as of this morning.`

All of the writing test scores for the Kenrose fourth grade and for one Scales fourth grade class were missing for a while, until state officials tracked them down in McMinn County and at the offices of the McKenzie, Tenn., special school district, Hobbins said.

`We're not pointing any fingers,` she said, `but the school codes were not put in correctly. The tests were received by the scoring company with the wrong school codes on them.`

The state writing assessment is given annually to all Tennessee public school students in grades 4, 7 and 11.

Hobbins said the tests are scored by North Carolina-based Measurement Inc.

Each batch of completed tests carries a numerical code that tells the scorer where to send the test results.

Some of the Scales tests and all of the Kenrose tests carried codes for the McMinn or the McKenzie school districts, Hobbins said.

The writing test results are normally included in the final report cards of students who have taken the test that year.

This Thursday is the last day of Williamson County schools' 1999- 00 academic year.

The snafu with the Kenrose and Scales test results was minor compared to the statewide delay of scores from the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP), which is the state achievement test given to all students in grades 3-8.

CTB/McGraw-Hill, which scores all of the TCAP tests, informed state education officials that its scoring software was not ready and test results wouldn't be delivered until sometime later this year.

Last year the scores were delayed three months by a scoring glitch at McGraw-Hill.

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-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), May 24, 2000