NY exams’ EZer pass
Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña bragged about an increase in the number of city kids passing the state Common Core tests — but that success may have more to do with the exams being made easier than with any real improvements in learning.
For the third consecutive year, the state has slashed the number of points required to be found “proficient” on the important exams, The Post has learned.
The tests also had fewer questions and the students were given unlimited time to finish — further raising doubts that this year’s rise in passing grades reflects progress.
Nevertheless, Fariña hailed the results of this year’s tests, which saw the number of kids passing in some grades rise as much as 11 percentage points.
“We have seen incredible improvement on these exams,” Fariña gushed when the results were released last Friday, crediting not only students but city Department of Education superintendents, principals and teachers.
Her boasting angered some state officials, who had cautioned it wasn’t possible to compare this year’s scores to last because of the changes in the exam process.
“It’s not an apples-to-apples comparison,” said state Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia.
For example, there was was a 10.7-point hike in city third-graders passing this year’s English test.
But in 2015, kids had to get 34 points out of a possible 55 points to pass, instead of the 28 out of 47 they needed to pass in 2016.
That means that to pass this year, kids could get 2 percent fewer points, which are awarded depending on the type of question.
In another example, there was a 3.4-point hike in students passing this year’s fifth-grade math test. But kids could get nearly 5 percent fewer points on this year’s test and still pass.
“The increases are illusory,” said David Bloomfield, a Brooklyn College and CUNY Graduate Center education professor, citing the changes in the test and scoring.
State DOE spokeswoman Emily DeSantis denied the exams are getting easier, saying, “This year’s tests were just as rigorous as those in the past.”
Fariña referred a request for comment to the state.