Controversy Surrounds Release Of Maryland Test Results

By Bess Keller

After a two-month delay for experts to vet some surprising ups and downs in the most recent state-test results, Maryland officials last week gave the scores a clean bill of health and released them.

But the move did not put an end to the controversy surrounding the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program, or MSPAP, which this year saw a three- fold increase in the number of schools with drops of 10 or more percentage points on their average composite scores. The superintendent of the state's largest district continued last week to publicly cast doubt on the validity of the results, marking the first time that local officials have criticized the 10- year-old program.

Meanwhile, Maryland schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick pointed to the stagnation of test scores as evidence that the state needs to move on a new round of proposed reforms, including the introduction of a statewide curriculum, a boost in school spending directed largely to disadvantaged students, and the means to put more teachers with...