WASHINGTON – An internal memo shows that District of Columbia schools officials were aware in early 2009 about the possibility of widespread cheating on standardized tests.
An analyst hired by then-schools chancellor Michelle Rhee found that 191 teachers at 70 schools had been implicated in possible testing infractions involving wrong answers that were erased and changed to the correct ones.
Investigations by inspectors general for the district and the U.S. Education Department found isolated cheating but not to the extent suggested by the erasure rates. One teacher was fired for cheating.
School officials say in a statement that the memo was based on incomplete information and flawed methodology.
The memo was obtained by journalist John Merrow, who shared it with The Associated Press. USA Today was first to report the memo’s contents.
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