As outrageous as it sounds, this is not an uncommon practice. In fact, it makes lots of sense with schools focusing like a laser beam on raising test scores (instead of, say, helping kids learn to think critically and make sense of the world for themselves), minimum-wage test scoring will be one of the hot new information-society careers school grads will have to look forward to.
The Sun-Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale, FL): State to hire $10-an-hour temporary workers to grade FCAT exams
TALLAHASSEE — Critics of Florida’s high-stakes FCAT exam are lashing out at the state for hiring thousands of $10-an-hour temporary workers to score tests that are so critical in determining school grades and student promotions.
“Florida students and their parents need assurance that their tests are being scored fairly and competently by people actually qualified to grade them and by people who have actual educational experience,” said Senate Democratic Leader Les Miller of Tampa, who Wednesday called on the state to investigate the hiring practice.
The uproar comes in the wake of a Kelly Services ad announcing 300 part-time openings in Central Florida for “scoring evaluators.” Duties include “electronically scoring essay-style questions for grades K through 12 on standardized student achievement tests.”
Those who apply get one week of training under the guidance of the state education department and CTB/McGraw Hill, which is under contract to grade the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Tests being given this month and next.
“It’s scandalous and demoralizing for teachers,” said Rep. Shelley Vana, D-Lantana, former president of the Palm Beach County Classroom Teacher Association and currently a science curriculum coordinator for the School District. “The question of who is scoring the test is important because of its high-stakes nature and the fact that parents don’t get to see the test.”
FCAT scores determine whether a student will receive a high school diploma. They also are used to determine whether a school is failing and affect school funding.
“If you’re holding highly educated teachers accountable, the same should be done for grading the exam,” said Pat Santeramo, president of the Broward Teachers Union. “It was always believed that professional educational companies with experience in this would be doing the grading. This is definitely one step below.”
State officials defend the practice — even though the FCAT Handbook states “professional scorers” will grade the test — and claim half the workers are retired teachers. Test scorers work eight hours a day for five weeks.
“They must have at least a bachelor’s degree to get a foot in the door,” said Cathy Schroeder, spokeswoman for the Department of Education. “And we make sure they understand how each question should be scored.”
She compared the hiring of temporary workers to hiring preparers of tax returns. At the end of the training week, the workers are given an exam in which they are asked to score 60 actual essays. If they don’t accurately grade the essays, they’re not hired. About 25 percent are winnowed out.
“We’ve gotten a lot of phone calls from parents who are really concerned,” Schroeder said. “The misconception is if [the scorers] are part-time, they’re not qualified. These are well-qualified evaluators.”
Each essay is evaluated by two workers. If there is a major difference in their grades, a supervisor is called in.
Some legislators say they’re concerned about discrepancies in FCAT grades that can’t be explained because parents and teachers aren’t allowed to see students’ tests.
“I’ve had teachers tell me students who were failing their class aced the FCAT but when they tried to find out why, they couldn’t. A father told me his son, an A student, flunked it but he couldn’t find out why,” said Sen. Skip Campbell, D-Fort Lauderdale. “This is happening throughout the system.”
Linda Kleindienst can be reached at lkleindienst@sun-sentinel.com or 850-224-6214.
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