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If the people further up the chain have similar incentives (higher scores = we've all done a great job), and most students are either benefiting from the cheati
by retsibsi 6y ago
If the people further up the chain have similar incentives (higher scores = we've all done a great job), and most students are either benefiting from the cheating or being harmed by it in only a fairly minor indirect way, it's plausible to me that nobody would want to stick their neck out and make enough of a fuss to change things.
I've never seen anything this egregious, but in my own experience people are usually willing to go along with systems that don't make sense (according to their ostensible purpose) and aren't very fair, if that's what everyone else is doing and there's no personal gain to be had by rocking the boat.
- sebmellen 6y agoYes, you make a good point. But there's another factor that I think makes this untenable, at least in the US — the widespread use of well-proctored standardized tests. Very hard to cheat on those.
- daniellarusso 6y agoI attended high school with a person whose mother pretended to be a guidance counselor, and was able to obtain a copy of the SAT test weeks before her daughter took the test. She graduated from Harvard. The mom got 24 months probation, 200 hours of community service, and had to pay $15k in restitution. Also “Operation Varsity Blues” revealed it is indeed possible to bypass ‘well-proctored’ protections.
- sebmellen 6y agoVery different situation though. A school can't game its stats year after year using measures like this, because they will be caught. From your references, it seems even in isolated cases there's punishment. In larger scales, like that of a whole classroom, subversion of the system is near impossible.
- daniellarusso 6y agoMy thought is that there are a number of parents who would say that the punishment is worth it if you can get your child into a top-tier university (based on my first reference - the parent spent no jail time away).
- a1369209993 6y agoNot sure about the probation but assuming 50$/hr, that's 25k$ to get into Harvard, versus bribes of usually >1M$ for alumni getting their kids in by funding a building, scholarship, or whatever. Sounds like they got a steep (if unreliable) discount.
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- astura 6y agoWhy would a (legitimate) guidance counselor have access to a copy of the SAT test before it was given?
- syrrim 6y agoPossibly the tests were stored on site, and the social engineering was needed to gain access to the room where they were stored.
- heymijo 6y ago"...I think makes this untenable, at least in the US" Some information that may be new to you: Widespread cheating is common in the US. Atlanta, El Paso, Columbus. Google "big city name + cheating" and you'll likely get a result. "A state investigation of Columbus, Ohio, public schools found a "top-down culture of data manipulation and employee intimidation" in connection with changes to test scores and student grades" [0] "An investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) released in July 2011 indicated that 44 out of 56 schools cheated on the 2009 CRCT.[2] One hundred and seventy-eight educators were implicated in correcting answers entered by students" [1] [0] https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303277704579349202004452142 https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303277704579349... [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Public_Schools_cheating_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlanta_Public_Schools_cheatin...
- srswtf123 6y agoGive me a break! Are you unaware of the college admissions scandal? American Exceptionalism — what this comment is — is pure delusion. I watched kids cheat on proctored exams a generation ago, and I’m certain it’s continuing and I’m certain my nieces and nephews will see the same.