Georgia Dems want probe of CRCT's

Georgia's Democratic leadership is calling for an investigation into Republican Superintendent Kathy Cox's handling of state-mandated tests this year.

38-percent of Georgia's 8th graders did not pass the math test this year. Many are in summer school hoping to pass and move on to 9th grade. Superintendent Cox says the failure rate was expected because Georgia has a tougher curriculum and a more rigorous test. House Minority Leader DuBose Porter called for an independent investigation, saying teachers did not get enough training.

"If we don't get it straight going to this fall, we're going to have the same results next year because teachers still have not been prepared to teach by that new curriculum or the new rigor of this CRCT test".

Cox says teachers are prepared and she makes no excuses for raising the bar in math so quickly.

"I think we've got to say we have not had a rigorous math curriculum and we haven't had the expectations, and our teachers are doing a heck of a job and they'll get there".

Cox says she's been forthcoming with information and expects most kids to pass the math test after summer school.

State exam scores up over all

Even though math scores among 8th graders are down, the Department of Education says by and large students improved across subjects on this year's state exams. New data says scores went up where new curriculum has been in place for two years or more. Scores plummeted on the sixth- and seventh-grade social studies test and the eighth-grade math test, both of which were in the first year of a new curriculum.

Student math scores will stand

Unlike the results of social studies testing, the state Department of Education has no plans to throw out math scores of Georgia 8th graders in the recent standardized testing results.

State D-O-E spokesperson Dana Tofig says the 40-percent failure rate in the math portion of the Criterion Referenced Competency Test, or CRCT, is in-line with what they expected with a tougher curriculum.

"There are no issues with math. The issues with social studies were that the data raised a big red flag for us. To see that type of pass-rate raised a big red flag. The pass rate for math did not raise a red flag”.

Wednesday, state schools Superintendent Kathy Cox announced the social studies scores for 6th and 7th graders will be tossed from recent testing in the CRCT’s. The recorded 70-80 percent failure rate was attributed to a vague curriculum, and testing not matching the coursework.