Posted on 08/01/2010 7:04:51 PM PDT by neverdem
LINDA L. SINGER, the principal of Public School 255 in Gravesend, Brooklyn, has some phone calls she is dreading to make.
Among them: informing 10 families that their children, scheduled to enroll in gifted programs, will no longer qualify, because of new, tougher grading on state English and math exams. And letting the rest of the teachers know that their A-graded school, which had shown consistent progress for years, plunged to a 65 percent passing rate in English, from 85 percent, according to standardized scores released last week.
“When I got these scores I thought I would die,” Ms. Singer said, echoing the feeling in many principals’ offices throughout the city. “Everything is changed.”
There were large drops in passing rates across New York, reflecting new requirements intended to correct for years of inflated results. The exams, state education officials said, had become too easy to pass, their definition of proficiency no longer meaningful. Citywide, the proficiency rate in English fell to 42 percent, from 69 percent last year; 54 percent reached grade level in math, down from 82 percent.
As the plummeting scores sunk in, principals planned strategy and contemplated the unraveling of other achievements, which they were suddenly informed were illusory. In New York City, where test scores are the cornerstone of school accountability, the new numbers, principals feared, could mean the end of their A grades from the Department of Education; a rise in negative teacher performance reviews, which are based partly on state tests; and substandard principal performance reviews.
But some of the principals’...
--snip--
At some schools, the drop was breathtaking. At Public School 85 in the Bronx, known as the Great Expectations School, there was a literal reversal in fortune, with proficiency on the third-grade math test flipping from 81 percent to 18 percent....
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
"Let are (sic) kids walk." Should be "Allow our children to walk." It undoubtedly refers to allowing failing students to walk the line at graduation. Interesting that it shows an interest only in receiving credentials, not obtaining an education.
I’ve lived in School District 21 for most of my life and I’ve never heard of this school. Apparently it’s probably a stone’s throw away because Gravesend isn’t that big.
I remember learning the Pythagoream Theorem in high school, and wondering what the heck I was going to do with it throughout life. On the other hand, if they teach how to balance a checkbook in math class, that’s a life skill that everybody could use.
Shouldn’t just be in business math, which is what my mother took so many years ago.
You're absolutely right, and I know it quite well; I spent 13 years in NYC public education - 5 in high school to boot.
In our school district to get into a GT Center program a kid has to take an independently administered IQ test, and achieve at least 140. At least that’s how it used to be.
I remember feeling exactly the same way when I took my regents in high school.
All this problem needs is MORE MONEY and MORE TEACHERS. /s
Jiminy Christmas, you poor kid. You’re gonna be in analysis for the rest of your life.
All advanced testing should be graded “on a curve”. The traditional mindset that A=90-100, B= 80-90, and so on is an artifact,
No that is called reality.
The “curve” is meaningless to actual learning and teaching, but may play some statistical function that can be subjectively viewed to spin any result needed at that time.
My high-school daughter takes honors classes (the equivalent of normal classes when I was in school). In her on non-honors class she was bored at the simplicity of the curriculum and amazed at the abject stupidity of her classmates.
Many children are just not interested in education, and neither are their parents. The world needs ditch diggers too, I guess. We don’t have public schools; we have a publically funded daycare system.
she said, with a smile.
I have a fairly analytical mind, maybe it won't be so bad.
There are plenty of Freepers who will defend “their public school.” Apparently, they’re not like the others.
Excellent.
I’m 27. Things may be worse now, but “in my day” you could still get a good education if you stuck to the advanced/honors courses. Those were geared to kids who were actually interested in learning and willing to be challenged. In my junior year, a scheduling conflict forced me to drop down into the “high”-level class (one step down from advanced) for my 20th century history course. It was such a comedown that even the 16-year-old version of me was appalled. We spent most of our class time on things like coloring maps and making collages. Just a taste of the education you apparently get if you go through public school taking the “high” courses.
You are right. It is sad. There are kids who do not qualify for honors courses who would still benefit from a good education. I tell people that unless their kids are honors kids, do not put them in the local school system for otherwise it is a pigpen.
Actually I onced used the Pythagorean theorem and the formula for area of a rectangle to check that the guy replacing my roof wasn’t buying more shingle than he needed. I hit the sq ft right on the head, though I never stepped on a ladder.
I agree with everything you’ve said - but there is an omission that I’d like to point out.
High school accountability tests are not aptitude tests - they are tests of mastery of curriculum. There isn’t anything on them to test for mastery other than the standards in the curriculum. So 51% correct denotes 51% mastery on curriculum. That is obviously not the case on SAT or a professor’s challenging exam to see how much more you’ve learned than the other students.
In fact, the Georgia High School Graduation test is a minimum standards test - not a test of mastery.
BTW I made a 28 on a math test that was an A in university too ;)
I can only speak for Georgia - where the test represent nothing more than the standards in the curriculum.
One year, a 51 scales to 82 while the next year a 36 scales to an 82 while the next year a 77 scales to an 82.
FWIW the state will not release its formula for scaling.
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