State PSSA cheating investigation now limited to Philly

The Philadelphia School District and two city charters are the last remaining targets of active investigations into possible cheating on state tests. To date, the Pa. Department of Education has filed complaints against more than 140 educators statewide as a result of its probe, now in its second year.

 

PDE spokesperson Timothy Eller confirmed the updates Thursday.

Last summer, PDE launched an investigation of 38 traditional school district and 10 charters. The goal was to determine if student answer sheets on state exams had been tampered with. At least 30 of those have been officially cleared. Others will face more intense scrutiny when administering the exams this year.  

The only such investigations that are still ongoing are in the Philadelphia district and at Philadelphia Electrical and Technical Charter High School and Imhotep Institute Charter High School, both in Philadelphia.

Efforts to determine if specific educators cheated may be ongoing, however. 

“On a statewide basis,” Eller wrote in an email, “there are multiple facets to the PSSA investigations.”