Many schools are offering parties, trips, all variety of incentive programs for high EOG scores. Last year, a bus took a group of kids from Tarboro to King’s Dominion, kids that made 4’s and 5’s. A Charlotte school took pictures of the children who made 4’s and 5’s so that the images could be made into posters to hang around the school. It was shared with me that a teacher observing the photography session said: In 19 years, I’ve actually never worked anywhere where scores were announced publicly.

According to the NC Test Coordinator Handbook, issued by DPI, schools are instructed (page 72): In no way may schools publicly acknowledge student results from testing including parties, trophies, special recognition etc. In sum, awards may NOT be based on test scores and children may not be singled out, in any way.

This instruction was made according to the Family Education Right to Privacy Act (FERPA.) It was passed in 1975 and requires schools to maintain a child and their family’s confidentiality.

If your school or your child’s school is planning fanfare for the high scoring children, please alert them to this law and consider the children who would be inadvertently left behind, likely through no fault of their own. I’m proud that my children’s schools reward for hard work and effort, not results.