Question: Allegations of Cheating Educators on the Rise

According to an article published today by The New York Times, the number of allegations of test-tampering and grade-changing by New York City educators have more than tripled since Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg took control of the city’s school system.

According to the article, Richard J. Condon, the commissioner assigned to the investigation, says this increase is attributable to both the expansion of the school system and “to the higher stakes attached to standardized tests and classroom grades. The city’s performance bonuses, teacher evaluations, school progress reports and decisions on closings are all increasingly tied to student performance.”

Condon’s department received 225 cheating complaints last year, a significant increase from 68 in 2003. This year’s numbers are already on pace to exceed both of those, as 155 allegations have already been made through the end of July.

In response to these reports, Schools Chancellor Dennis M. Walcott stated that he did not believe that the increase in allegations is necessarily connected to actual acts of misconducts taking place, saying: “People are reporting things, that’s fine; we want people to report things…people could be reporting for real and not necessarily real reasons.”

Walcott’s chief academic officer, Shael Polakow-Suransky, added: “When there is conflict that exists in a school — sometimes between teachers, sometimes between teachers and administration — it is not unusual that there are reports and allegations made as a result of that.”

As far as how the city carries out cheating investigations, the article states:

The city now checks only for suspicious erasures, a telltale sign of educator cheating, in response to a specific complaint; there is no other systemwide analysis to detect cheating on the state standardized tests given in grades 3 through 8. City officials say their emphasis on security measures before and on testing days, including a requirement that answer sheets be quickly whisked to secure grading centers, reduces the need for post-test checks.

So here is our question: What do you make of this increase in cheating allegations? Is the issue of teachers tampering with test scores and grades a product of the current economic times, or is it simply a lack of professionalism and ethics? How would you react if you discovered this was taking place in your child's school?

Tell us in the comments below.