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Eagle Point examines teacher conduct at test By DAMIAN MANN EAGLE POINT - A junior high English teacher was placed on paid administrative leave Wednesday amid allegations she helped students as they were taking state writing assessment tests. According to sources within the district, who asked not to be named, two students reportedly told their parents they saw the teacher helping other students during the tests. About 100 students were required to retake the tests Friday, though some reportedly refused, protesting the decision to temporarily remove the teacher. Her name is being withheld until the district files a report with the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission, which investigates complaints of teacher misconduct. After the parents told the administration about the incident, the school began an investigation. Some students circulated a petition Friday supporting the teacher, who has worked for the district about 20 years. The teacher, reached by telephone Friday, declined to comment on any aspect of the allegations or investigation, referring questions to her attorney. She would only say, "I know the kids are feeling a lot of love and support and I love them dearly." Her attorney, Monica Smith, of the Portland firm of Smith, Gamson, Diamond and Olney, said she is still waiting for an official notification from the school principal about the charges against her client. At this point, she said she wouldn't respond to any allegations since no written charges have been made. "It's very easy for misunderstandings to arise - that a teacher can be providing appropriate instruction that can be misinterpreted as taking the test for them (the students)," Smith said. Jody Streetman, president of the Eagle Point Education Association, said she didn't know any specifics about the issue involving the teacher. "We just heard there was a teacher out at the junior high," said Streetman, who teaches at Eagle Point High School. "I've heard the kids are up in arms. The kids are real distraught by what's going on." Eagle Point Junior High School Principal Dennis Quiring said, "I can't make any comments at all." Melody Hanson, executive assistant for the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission, said penalties for teachers violating rules of conduct range from a revoked license to a public reprimand, a suspension or probation. Hanson said the district has 30 days to release an official report on the incident. Once the report - which has not been finished - is received from the district, the commission will assign an investigator, who interviews witnesses, issues subpoenas and gathers documentation, she said. Bill Auty, associate superintendent for the Office of Assessment and Evaluation for the Oregon Department of Education, said that schools occasionally discover instances in which teachers have helped students on tests. "I do know of a couple of cases where the teachers have crossed the line this year," he said. While there is an administrative manual that contains test-taking procedures, Auty acknowledged that it isn't possible to address every situation that might arise. Teachers may explain instructions, but students are supposed to complete the test entirely by themselves. "It's an on-demand testing situation," he said. "They (the students) have to sit down and write something in a certain amount of time." Students are allowed to have a dictionary to confirm the spelling of a word, but the rules say students can't use a spell checker, said Auty. While students are testing, he said, "A teacher can't circle words or provide any proofing." Auty acknowledged that teachers and schools have felt more pressure to do well on the state tests. "We've made every effort to make them (the tests) medium stakes, not high stakes like in some states," he said. Other states use test scores to determine how much to fund schools or whether a student can graduate. "We have not done any of those things," said Auty. "That's not to deny that pressure isn't being felt." Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.