Flat state exam scores still mystery

A third-party investigation into why scores declined last year on statewide tests for high school juniors concluded that an unusual drop on one section of the test did indeed occur, but the probe did not determine why.

In November, state officials hired Louisville, Ky.-based Human Resources Research Organization after high school reading scores dropped four percentage points and 328 high schools -- more than ever before --failed to meet state standards.

The Prairie State Achievement Exam for juniors consists of the college-entrance ACT test and the job-skills WorkKeys test.

Local school officials balked after scores stayed steady on the math sections of both tests and on the reading section of the ACT, but fell on the reading section of the WorkKeys.

The third-party review, completed in February and recently made public by the state, found that the WorkKeys decline was "substantial" and "inconsistent" with students' performance on the rest of the exam.

Investigators couldn't determine the reason for the anomaly but wrote in a report that "it seems unlikely that the entire state de-emphasized the skills and knowledge required to score well on WorkKeys."

State Board of Education spokesman Matt Vanover said the state could appoint a technical panel to further investigate the tests but "at this point, without an explanation of what occurred, it's very difficult to say what the next actions would be."

Meanwhile, local school officials continue to argue their students and schools have been unfairly labeled as failing.

In Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211, 600 students scored an 18 on the ACT -- a score that makes them eligible to enroll in at least one Illinois public university -- but failed the state test, according to district records.

"We strongly believe those students and schools wronged in 2007 remain wronged," said a letter to state Board of Education members signed by District 211 school board members, high school principals and administrators.

The test "left 600 students in District 211 who took the PSAE in 2007 unfairly judged and three Township High School District 211 schools facing severe sanctions. How many students and schools statewide have experienced the same unfair results?" the letter said.