Cox voids some CRCT scores

State superintendent Kathy Cox has decided to throw out the social studies scores of 6th and 7th graders on the CRCT.

Parents and educators were alarmed this week to find that pass rates on that portion of the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests plunged to unexpected lows.

Only 20-30% of sixth and seventh graders passed the social studies test this year, compared to more than 80% last year. Dana Tofig, spokesperson for the Department of Education, says the state expected lower numbers because it was a new curriculum and a new test, but the dip was more dramatic than expected.

"After we looked at the standard and we looked at the assessment, we came to the conclusion that the scores were not a trustworthy measure of the student achievement in social studies," Tofig said.

Several parents say their children reported that the exam tested topics that they had never covered in class. Tofig says it's more likely that the test delved more deeply into topics they did cover, but without that level of detail.

The Education Department is impaneling a committee to look at the curriculum, the test, and teacher training.