When I attended East St. Louis public schools, I had the utmost respect for my principals and teachers. They were role models and authority figures who, I felt, epitomized the very essence of integrity, honesty and civility.
However, in this age of “No Child Left Behind” and standardized testing, some principals, teachers and administrators apparently have felt the need to “cheat rather than compete” in their quest to make their schools appear more competitive than they actually are.
That seems to have been the case at Annette Officer Elementary School, according to an investigative report released by East St. Louis School District 189.
In the report, ESL School District 189 Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources and Community Relations Beth Shepperd alleges what appears to be rampant cheating on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT), as facilitated by Officer Elementary former principal Ronald Ferrell, instructional coach Barbara Curtis and staff.
Shepperd’s extensively documented report (including statements from teachers and students) alleges that, in violation of state testing standards, students were told to write lightly to facilitate the erasing of answers so that it would “not look like someone else made them.”
In addition, Ferrell allegedly allowed students to go back and complete tests which had been taken on previous days. Curtis reportedly gave orders for students to sit in groups, write answers on separate sheets of paper and then transfer those answers to their test booklets. Curtis allegedly commented to students that if students wanted to look on another student’s paper, “there is nothing we can do about it.”
And in one instance in which Ferrell administered a test for an absent teacher, he allegedly allowed students to correct their wrong answers as well as gave them extra time to complete what was supposed to be a timed exam.
Then Ferrell, according to the investigation, asked students, “I didn’t give you answers, did I?” When the class replied “No,” Ferrell proceeded to say, “Good, because I would get in trouble for giving you answers.”
The report also revealed that one teacher informed investigators that Ferrell even developed a code to be broadcast over the intercom in the event that interlopers from District 189 or the state entered the building unannounced to monitor the tests. That code was “Will Mr. Lincoln please come to the office?”
As a result of Shepperd’s report to Superintendent Arthur Culver on March 25, disciplinary hearings were scheduled for May 15 for all of the accused staff.
Since that time, Ronald Ferrell has resigned and Barbara Curtis has retired.
Superintendent Arthur Culver and Assistant Superintendent Beth Shepperd are to be commended for their diligence and transparency in investigating and addressing the issue of academic integrity.
Prior to state oversight of ESL schools, no such investigation was ordered by previous Superintendent Teresa Saunders, who seemed to be too compromised, secretive and defensive to call out questionable activities.
This is a victory for the students, the parents and the teachers of ESL and a major step toward educational reform for the entire community. It’s also a message to any would-be cheaters or slackers within ESL’s teaching and administrative ranks: zero tolerance for ineptitude.
Email: jtingram_1960@yahoo.com; Twitter@JamesTIngram.
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