Apr 4, 2017 6 min read

It’s PSSA time, and the pressure is on.

The Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests are being administered this week in public school districts statewide. Students in grades three through eight take the standardized exams, which measure English language arts skills, mathematics and science. PSSA scores are regarded as a barometer of a student’s ability to learn and a measure of a school district’s quality.

So the heat is on students, educators and districts, all of whom want to do well. Educators have the added burden of quality control, assuring students and other educators don’t cheat.

A random sampling of districts in Washington and Greene counties shows there are safeguards in place to ease the heat on youngsters and to ensure that nothing resembling the Philadelphia School District scandal of several years ago breaks out locally.

In 2012, the Pennsylvania Department of Education launched an investigation into allegations of PSSA cheating in that district. Students were allegedly coached and had their answers changed.

Eight city educators were arrested and a number of others were sanctioned by the department.

The education department instituted tighter testing controls in the Philadelphia schools that same year and test scores fell immediately.

George Lammay, assistant superintendent at Bentworth, appreciates those safeguards.

“We take great pride in our work and the kids try to be accountable. But at the same time, we don’t want them to feel so pressured,” he said.

“We offer them breakfast if they need it and a snack in the middle (of testing). You want them to perform at a peak for the assessments. They may be taking tests for two hours, three days in a row. You see some weariness in the kids after awhile.”

Lammay said the education department “is trying to reduce the length of testing, maybe reduce the number of questions.”

As for cheating, he said educators go through an “extensive” training program that includes webinars and online work, and is repeated annually. They review the standards and later go over them with students. Cellphones are collected.

“Some districts may cross the line, but the great majority of school districts don’t,” Lammay said. “They would never cheat. One of the consequences is revocation of certification.”

That is one of many sanctions spelled out in the education department’s Handbook for Secure Test Administration. Penalties “may include a private reprimand, a public reprimand, a suspension of his/her teaching certificate(s), a revocation of his/her teaching certificate(s), and/or a suspension or prohibition from being employed by a charter school.”

Lammay is wary of one facet of PSSA testing.

“I don’t know if folks appreciate how some kids feel about this,” he said. “To me, that is really concerning. Kids who struggle to learn are perplexed by these tests.”

Dr. Roberta DiLorenzo, Washington’s superintendent, is a staunch supporter of anti-cheating training. “It’s a very serious business that we conduct tests while maintaining our integrity,” she said. “We take this very seriously and assure that time is set aside for training. And we make certain everyone signs off on that.”

Washington started its three-day PSSAs Tuesday. DiLorenzo, who will retire at the end of the school year, said students are offered snacks during breaks and that proctors are on hand to give teachers a break during testing. She said the tests are important, but doesn’t want students to overstress.

“To alleviate high anxiety about a hot-topic test, we take the stance, ‘It’s another measurement of what you know,'” DiLorenzo said.

Peters Township takes a similar approach.

“Principals meet with students to ease their minds on what they expect,” said Mike Fisher, assistant to the superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment, who oversees all PSSA preparations for the district.

“One of the things we try to tell students is this is just another test. While there is a lot of accountability, we don’t want to add pressure because their performances won’t be there. We want a good snapshot of how they’ll perform.”

Communications coordinator Shelly Belcher said students have been offered perks during PSSAs, including ice cream at lunch on Friday at the middle school and extra recesses for younger students.

Central Greene helps to ensure the integrity of its testing program by monitoring students during testing and by the use of a teacher assessment, Superintendent Brian Uplinger said.

“The principals are in the building and they monitor the testing, checking in on areas where the testing is being done,” he said.

Teachers also prepare for the program. “All our teachers and administrators go through an online assessment,” Uplinger said.

The assessment, offered by the state Department of Education, addresses “quality assurance” issues as well as procedures to which they are required to adhere, he said.

Uplinger said he is confident about the outcomes. “We have an absolutely fantastic staff and they make sure they do what they need to do and stay within the guidelines,” he said.

To help students during testing, the district provides snacks, “little things to help keep them motivated,” Uplinger said. It also holds events before the tests. In the elementary grades, for instance, a PSSA “pep rally” is held to emphasize the need for students to do their best on the tests, he said.

John Menhart, superintendent in the Carmichaels Area School District, said he is confident in safeguards employed to protect the integrity of the student testing program.

Students take the PSSAs in their classrooms, which are monitored by teachers and teachers aides. “I have the utmost respect and confidence in our teachers,” Menhart said. They follow the guidelines, he said – “and they know that it could lead to their dismissal if they did anything to the contrary.”

The tests also remain secure. “They are only handled by designated people and they are stored in a designated area that is off limits and under lock and key,” he said.

Carmichaels Area used to provide snacks and breaks to students taking the tests, but doesn’t do that now. “We just found that to be more of distraction,” Menhart said. Various activities, however, are scheduled after test-taking as a kind of reward, he said.