Because these people were in the wrong and were offered a plea.
They were given an out that they refused.
People in this thread have said they should have been fired and fined, which is what the plea offers were.
If the punishment for stealing a pen was punishable by death and you conspired with a group of other people to steal the pen then it would be wise to take the plea.
No, the reason this is happening is because they went against their ethics in an attempt to circumvent the system they decided to be a part of.
No one forced them to be teachers and No Child Left Behind has been around for some time.
The only people innocent in this situation are the children that were cheated.
I can't embed the video but one of the parents is speaking about her child:
http://www.11alive.com/story/news/education/2015/04/14/aps-cheating-scandal/25789407/