Hempfield boy, 10, orders 'secure' PSSA tests with ease (No Child Left Behind!)

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review ^ | 4/18/2009 | Richard Gazarik

[Born Conservative]

A 10-year-old Westmoreland County boy "playing school" cracked the tight security surrounding Pennsylvania's standardized assessment tests by obtaining the codes to place an online order for a box of the closely guarded exams.

State Education Department officials were shocked by the events involving the student, a fifth-grader at Bovard Elementary School in the Hempfield Area School District.

"We've never had a security breach of that nature," Education Department spokeswoman Leah Harris said. "Only the school district's test coordinator can order tests. It's a very secure system."

But Rebecca Costello, director of pupil services at Hempfield, confirmed the student simply faxed an order from his home for the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests, commonly known as the PSSAs.

Costello said the Hempfield boy sent the order to Data Recognition Corp. of Maple Grove, Minn., the company that produces the exams for Pennsylvania, Ohio and several other states.

The youngster began by completing an order form on the Education Department Web site where he found two codes needed to complete the transaction. He listed his home address, the name of his school and his teacher's name on the paperwork, Costello said.

The box of tests was sent to the school district's warehouse.

Costello said the student did not intend to cheat on the tests, which were administered at Bovard in March.

"He purposely requested the tests to come on the last day (of testing) because he didn't want to see the test before he took it," Costello said. "He wants to be a teacher. He wanted to play school.

[LukeL]

I know, but if a layperson can order official medical test that are for health professionals only, it would seem with a little digging a person could order any type of test even if it is for school use only.

[Born Conservative]

Don’t worry; I’m sure some Bureaucrat will come along and decide that Psych and other such tests should not be available to the public, and will require proper credentials and government clearance to purchase them.

[TankerKC]

This entire story reeks.

[Buckeye McFrog]

I hope that this young man enjoys detention, because after the humiliating de-pantsing that he’s just delivered to the Pennsylvania educrat powers-that-be, I assure you he is going to be getting a steady diet of it from now till graduation.

[TankerKC]

"In the presence of his parents, (the principal) asked him to show him how he ordered the test. He sat down at the computer and showed them exactly how it was done," Marin said.

Who are his parents? What interest might they have in these tests? I'm not buying the "10 year-old wannbe teacher" story.

[Duck Fan]

Someone should hire this kid to order 0bama’s birth certificate.

[fortunecookie]

A 10-year-old Westmoreland County boy "playing school" cracked the tight security surrounding Pennsylvania's standardized assessment tests by obtaining the codes to place an online order for a box of the closely guarded exams.

So the 10 year old cracks the secure system? Kind of funny, seemingly innocent at his age. Good to know our state has such secure websites... Hurry! More taxes to 'study' the problem.