The End of Erasures: Updating Test Security Laws and Policies for Computerized Testing

Email research.policy@act.org for more information. © 2014 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved. 2282www.act.org/research-policyIssue Brief ACT Research & PolicyOctober 2014Although shifting to computer administration of tests does reduce some test security risks, it also creates new risks that states will need to address with new laws and policies.The End of Erasures: Updating Test Security Laws and Policies for Computerized TestingMichelle CroftIn 2013, 35 educators in Atlanta, including the district superintendent, were indicted for cheating on the state’s standardized tests with charges ranging from making false statements to racketeering.1 The cheating activities were alarming: educators meeting over the weekend to erase and correct incorrect answers, arranging classroom seating so lower ability students could see the answer sheets of higher ability students, and looking at the next day’s test questions and discussing the questions with the class.2 In January 2014, eight of the educators pleaded guilty,3 and the trial for twelve others started in August 2014.4The actions in Atlanta are not anomalous. In Philadelphia three high school principals were fired and 130 other educators face disciplinary actions for cheating on student assessments.5 Cheating scandals have surfaced across the country in California, Arizona, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, and Washington, DC. In the wake of these test security scandals, strong test security measures are needed given the importance of scores for instruction, evaluation, and accountability. In 2012, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) held a symposium to discuss best practices related to prevention, detection, and investigation of testing irregularities.6 Since most states are moving away from paper-and-pencil test administration,7 one of the topics discussed was the transition to computer-administered testing. This shift to computer administration could be seen as a way to avoid many of the test security problems at issue in cities like Atlanta and Washington, DC. In those cities, most of the media attention focused on the high number of wrong-to-right erasures, where more students’ answer documents had more changes from wrong to right than would statistically be expected. With computerized testing, there are no testing booklets or answer sheets.Computerized test administration, however, introduces its own test security risks. A panelist at the NCES symposium highlighted that “shifting to a new assessment delivery model such as a computer delivered or even computer adaptive testing does not make cheating and test piracy go away. They merely take a different form.”8 For instance, many of the test security concerns will be the same. There will still need to be efforts to prevent unauthorized access to secure exam materials, student access to restricted materials (e.g., a calculator when not allowed for testing), or inappropriate use of accommodations. There are unique risks for test security breaches depending on the delivery mode. For computerized administration, such risks include:9• educators logging in to tests to view questions or change student responses• computer hacking• keystroke logging• printing, emailing, or storing test information in a computer outside the test delivery systemFurthermore, compared to paper-and-pencil administration, there is a greater risk of students accessing the Internet and other programs during testing.10 These security risks are increased when students are allowed to test on their own 2 ACT Research & Policy The End of Erasures: Updating Test Security Laws and Policies for Computerized Testingmet the criteria. I then reviewed each state’s assessment administration manual’s test security section and other relevant portions of the manual. Six common themes emerged from the manuals: storage and secure materials, test access, testing window, student workstations, technology requirements, and specificity. In what follows, each of these themes is discussed with examples.Storage and Secure MaterialsBecause there will likely always be paper-and-pencil forms as an accommodation for certain students with disabilities, the inclusion of paper-and-pencil test security policies, particularly those policies related to storage, is appropriate. Computer-based testing does not eliminate the need to focus on the security of materials, however, since students often are provided with “tickets” to gain admission to the test. The student ticket may include the student’s name and login information. This information must be secure so someone other than the student does not use the login information to access the test either to gain knowledge of the test items or to complete the test on the student’s behalf. Likewise, scratch paper may be kept secure prior to and after testing. The storage provisions traditionally reserved for paper-and-pencil tests can be adapted for computer-based testing. For instance, the test security