7 Norfolk schools reviewed by state for testing problems

RICHMOND

State education officials said Thursday that seven Norfolk schools have been scrutinized for possible testing violations on accreditation exams taken last year.

Norfolk School Board Chairman Stephen Tonelson said he has asked state education officials to review testing practices in the entire division.

The state Board of Education was briefed on Norfolk testing problems during the panel's regular meeting in Richmond.

The latest revelation of testing allegations involves Oakwood and Bay View elementaries and Rosemont Middle, said Shelley Loving-Ryder, the state's assistant superintendent for student assessment and school improvement.

Last week, the state received an allegation that some Oakwood students were intentionally excluded from Standards of Learning history tests in certain grades, she said.

The state uses SOL tests to determine whether a school should be accredited.

Norfolk Superintendent Stephen C. Jones told the state board that he takes the irregularities seriously. Two employees have been disciplined in connection with the problems, he said. He did not identify the employees.

"No one is urging teachers or administrators to bend the rules and cheat" in Norfolk, he said. "That is not the culture."

Tonelson told the state board that the Norfolk School Board "is tremendously concerned. We're embarrassed for our kids and our teachers, who are working very hard."

At Rosemont, an allegation was made that special- needs students who were assessed through an SOL alternative were pulled out of class to complete samples of their school work. The state requires that such students compile a portfolio of work over the course of the entire academic year, state spokesman Charles Pyle said.

At Bay View, the state reviewed whether some teachers altered test answer sheets completed by students. The state found no evidence of tampering, Loving-Ryder said.

Tonelson said a division wide review by the state will help end any confusion about proper testing practices.

"Reviewing what we do is critical so that we do it correctly, and critical to rebuilding the trust so many of our people deserve," including teachers, students and school families, he said.

The state will start interviewing Norfolk teachers and principals next month to gauge what the division's testing practices are and what changes might be needed, Loving-Ryder said.

Since December, city and state investigations of testing at Campostella and Dreamkeepers Academy elementary schools and Northside and Lafayette-Winona middle schools have been revealed. "Typically, we do not see multiple allegations in a school district in the course of a year. That stands out," Pyle said.

"Does it concern me? Yes," State Superintendent Patricia Wright said. "I would not want to say reports of irregularities are run-of-the-mill."

Some of the allegations, including at Lafayette-Winona, focus on an alternative SOL called the Virginia Grade Level Alternative. It is given to some students with learning disabilities.

Tonelson said some students with low IQs or reading levels were being compelled by government rules to participate in the VGLA even though the alternative wasn't appropriate for their abilities.

Loving-Rider said the allegations in some cases have come from Norfolk school parents and former teachers.

The rising tide of testing irregularities moved Wright in January to offer Norfolk technical assistance in proper methods for SOL testing. The state will also help the division by making sure it better identifies special- education students for VGLA testing.

State board member David Foster also directed department staffers to report their findings on Norfolk's testing problems.

Irregularities have two bad impacts, he said.

"One, obviously, is on the students," he said. "Two is on the image of public schools."

Jones told the board, "My personal integrity and that of the city of Norfolk has been questioned."

Steven G. Vegh, (757) 446-2417, steven.vegh@pilotonline.com