Scrap Keystone Exams, PA Auditor General Says

Pennsylvania is still spending tens of millions of dollars annually on Keystone Exams that have not been required federally for four years, state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale noted in a new report. He believes students would be better served by instead taking the SAT or ACT.

DePasquale is irked that the Pennsylvania Department of Education is still paying the test creator, Minnesota -based Data Recognition Corp., tens of millions of dollars each year to administer and score the exams. Between 2015 and 2021, Pennsylvania will have spent nearly $100 million on the Keystones, he said.

“When the federal law changed in 2015, why didn’t Pennsylvania begin to phase out the Keystone Exams? I could understand if they used them for a short time after that, but it’s been four years — and if (the education department) completes the current contract they will have spent nearly $100
million,” DePasquale said.

DePasquale, who recently launched a congressional bid, said students could have been taking a nationally recognized test such as the SAT or ACT – which is shown to improve the rate at which students attend post-secondary education – at a lower cost than what has been paid for the Keystones.

“Not only would this change benefit families who now have to pay out of pocket for their children to take these nationally recognized tests, it could help students who are not on a college track discover that they could succeed in college and possibly change the course of their future,” DePasquale said.

DePasquale’s 18-page special report details five observations and provides five recommendations for action to stop spending taxpayer money on standardized tests Pennsylvania students do not need. Read the entire “Where Did Your Money Go?” report by clicking on the link.