DATE:
Thursday, July 25, 2019
TO:
All Principals and District Department Directors/Consultants
FROM:
Anthony Godfrey, Superintendent
Ben Jameson, Director of Evaluation, Research and Accountability
SUBJECT:
2019-20 Required Testing Ethics Professional Development Procedures for Classified Employees
Licensed teachers will do their testing ethics training as part of their annual crucial policies and procedures review. Principals do not need to train their teachers on testing ethics for the 2019-20 school year; however, principals will need to do an in-person training with any classified support staff that will participate in any kind of testing.
Instructions, materials, and documentation forms for the required 2019-20 Testing Ethics professional development, are being sent to schools via the Jordan Administrative Memo (JAM). These materials will also be available online at http://assessments.jordandistrict.org/ethics/ . The three required procedures for completing this testing ethics professional development are listed on the “2019-20 Principal’s Testing Ethics Checklist for Classified Employees” form provided in the materials, which is due to the Evaluation, Research & Accountability Department by Friday, September 20, 2019.
It is important that all classified staff that assist with testing be reminded that the professional testing ethics required for all Federally-mandated assessments such as NAEP and WIDA or State-mandated assessments such as RISE, Utah Aspire Plus, ACT, Acadience Reading benchmarks and progress monitoring, also apply to all District-mandated assessments such as benchmark tests, SLO assessments, and other District-created assessments. Students must not be given secured assessment questions as homework or discussion items. Any use of secured assessment questions for instruction, discussion, or homework compromises the validity and integrity of the assessment questions and constitutes a violation of professional testing ethics protocol.
Principals are to make sure that teachers as well as paraprofessionals that assist with testing understand that professional testing ethics must be followed when working with District-mandated as well as State- and Federally-mandated assessments. Principals are also to remind teachers and paraprofessionals that assist with testing that any potential disciplinary action specified for violating professional testing ethics on State- and Federally-mandated assessments, also applies to any violation of professional testing ethics on District-mandated assessments.
