TOP TEST SECURITY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS John Fremer, Ph.D. President Caveon Test Security October 25, 2006

Context  Caveon Test Security Audits for State and National Programs  Survey for Washington State  Collect state regulations for districts  Recommend “best practices”  Corporate Mission is to Enhance Fairness and Validity in Testing

Caveon Security Audit Topics  Management 1.Security Plan 2.Roles & Responsibilities 3.Budget & Funding 4.Legal Precautions & Agreements

Caveon Security Audit Topics  Test Dev/Admin/Scoring  Test & Item Design  Test & Item Development & Maintenance  Test Publication  Test Administration  Test Scores and Results

Caveon Security Audit Topics  Preparing and Protecting  Information Security  Web & Media Monitoring  Security Awareness & Training  Security Breach Action Plan  Physical Security

Testing in School Districts  Much “high stakes” testing driven by State  State provides:  Tests  Rules  Training of district trainers  Forms and procedures

1. Security Plan  Each district should create and maintain a Security Plan:  Formal, written document  Goals, policies and procedures, roles and responsibilities  Security Response Plan

2. Roles and Responsibilities  Designate a Security Coordinator  Charged with the development and dissemination of the Security Plan  Overall coordination of security activities.

3. Budget and Funding  School districts should establish and maintain a budget and contingency funding for security purposes.

4. Legal Precautions and Agreements  Review agreements that are signed by staff and others involved in testing for:  References to protecting secure test material  Preserving confidentiality of information about investigations of irregularities.

8. Test Administration  Use “two person rule” for all  Logging in  Distribution  Repacking of secure test materials

9. Test Scores and Results  Analyze test response data for:  cheating  piracy  collusion (i.e., organized cheating).

10. Security Awareness and Training  Create opportunities for personnel to discuss aspects of security on a structured or unstructured basis.

11. Security Breach Action Plan  Overall Standard  The district should have a plan for responding to known security breaches. This response may involve further investigation and evaluation of the students, teachers, and others involved. The plan should include appropriate and measured responses to the breach.

Recommendation  Create policies and procedures providing specific direction to management and staff regarding how to respond to unauthorized disclosures of test content on the Internet and in other “test prep” materials.

12. Physical Security  Overall Standard  The district should have formal policies and procedures to promote the security of items, tests, and related material in the work area, including access to storage areas and files and careful monitoring of use of materials.

Recommendation  Make sure that “secure” storage areas really are secure, e.g., no Styrofoam ceiling panels

Contact Information   (215)   Corporate Office  Phone (801)  Fax (801)

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