Two-way inquiry on test scores State looking into big gains and drops Thursday, January 04, 2007 • BY JOHN MOONEY • Star-Ledger Staff The state's inquiry into "highly unusual" shifts in school test scores last year involves nearly as many schools reporting sharp declines as those posting gains, documents show. The state Department of Education has asked for further information from 39 schools in 25 districts, including Newark, Jersey City, Elizabeth, East Orange and Irvington, according to documents obtained through the Open Public Records Act. More than half the cases involve big jumps in scores, from a 13-point increase in the passing rate at Clearview Regional Middle School in Gloucester County to a nearly 50-point jump at Jersey City's School 39. Yet 16 of the schools drew the state's attention because of precipitous drops in success rates, prompting questions of possible irregularities or other problems. For instance, four of five Camden schools cited by the state saw sharp decreases in 2006, a year after state officials found instances of "adult interference" that may have led to significantly higher scores in 2005. The inquiries were first announced last month with the release of statewide test scores, but the state withheld the names of schools and other details laid out in the documents. State officials insist they are not just seeking testing irregularities, but also changes in instruction and staffing that could prove helpful for other schools and districts. The letters sent to districts ask them to provide information about changes in teacher training, curriculum, facilities and other factors. "There are no prejudgments," state Education Commissioner Lucille Davy said yesterday. "Some of these pop out as especially large gains or drops, and as any inquiring mind would want to know, we are asking, 'Why?'" Yet, in the wake of the Camden scandal last year, this is the state's first such inquiry. In addition, background papers released by the state also indicate a primary focus of the inquiry was to identify "statistically remarkable changes" and follow up for potential problems. For instance, a departmental memo from August explained the need to use a certain statistical weight "for detecting widespread adult interference or cheating," so as not to call into question schools seeing moderate gains or drops. Local district officials receiving the letters from the state have expressed a range of reactions, from indignation to resignation to curiosity. Several said the rises or drops appeared to be products of curriculum or enrollment changes. In Plainfield, a 40-point increase in the fourth-graders' scores at the Cedarbrook School was actually in line with those same pupils' scores the year before in third grade. Jersey City had four schools cited, one for falling scores and three for rising numbers. Two of them with the big increases -- Academy II and School No. 39 -- are very small, potentially skewing the results, officials said. Another school, School No. 34, saw a 35-point jump in its fourth-grade math scores that officials said they should be proud of. "No. 34 is one we should take some credit for," said Michael Littlejohn, the district's director of testing. "I think there is a whole different type of pedagogy going on there." As for School No. 8, which saw a 26-plus-point drop in its third-grade language arts scores, Littlejohn said he wasn't sure of the reason, either. But as with all of them, he would provide an answer to the state within the month. "We will have a more formal response once we can look into it," he said. John Mooney covers education. He may be reached at jmooney@star ledger.com, or 973-392-1548. © 2006 The Star-Ledger. Used by NJ.com with permission.