The author reports on a state investigation into Atlanta's impressive gains on state tests which finds that test-tampering was rampant in the much-praised school system. The report unveiled by the Georgia governor's office states that Atlanta teachers and principals for years methodically altered answer sheets for students taking state tests,…

This article reports on new research which shows that, when students succeed at cheating on tests, they get duped into thinking they're smarter than they really are. In four experiments detailed in the March "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences", researchers from the Harvard Business School and Duke University found that cheaters pay…

The cheating scandal that has rocked the 48,000-student Atlanta school system was an egregious, but not entirely unexpected, byproduct of accountability pressures, many testing experts say. The reason: As long as test scores are used in any field to make decisions on rewards or punishments, including for schools or educators, a small percentage of…