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MCAS in the News (Week of October 11, 2002)
This week:
- DOE releases news that the 70% graduation rate projected
for the Class of 2003 is down from 77% for the Class of 2002 - putting
Massachusetts on par with Louisiana' rate of 69%.
- DOE also reports that ninth grade non-promotions are up
to 8.4% statewide, with a 25% rate for
Boston in 2000-01.
- Local news comes from Fairhaven,
West Springfield, and Mohawk
Trail where school committees consider awarding
local diplomas despite MCAS scores, schools prepare to request
waivers for 50 students "failing," and
students request a hearing with state officials;
- In Cambridge, boycotting
in the K-8 schools and miniscule 9th and 10th grade dropout rates affect school
scores;
- On-line tutoring by Princeton Review is
re-launched, and other MCAS prep continues -- while
one Plymouth administrator speculates that too much
MCAS prep could contribute to lower SAT scores --
and many, including students in vocational schools
in metro-west Boston, still struggle.
- And misreporting of MCAS participation for
special ed students is reported in Blue Hills Voc,
Brockton and other
south-of-Boston districts.
Also, a timely article from the national press: NY Times, 10/9: Lessons:
Dropout rate is climbing, and likely to go higher,
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/09/education/09LESS.html:
..... With dropout data so difficult to pin down, there has been too little
discussion about why the rate apparently climbed. One worrisome possibility is
that as states required students to pass tests for promotion, more pupils who
were held back now leave school when they are old enough to do so.....
..... Studies that compare high school graduates to young people who took
equivalency exams find that even among those who have similar academic scores
graduates have higher earnings, more employment success and less crime than
those who received equivalency certificates.....
Boston Globe, 10/11: Majority of MCAS failures from white
students; but minorities have higher rate, data show
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/284/metro/Majority_of_MCAS_failures_from_white_students+.shtml
The average student in the class of 2003 who must still
pass the MCAS to graduate high school is white and male. Most of those who have
failed speak English, are enrolled in regular classes, and don't come from
low-income homes, new state data released yesterday showed.
But while 55 percent of those who haven't passed the
English and math on the 10th-grade test are white, minority students are still
overrepresented among those who may be denied diplomas next spring. So are
low-income and special education students, and students who speak limited
English.
Blacks and Hispanics, for example, each made up 8 percent
of those in the class of 2003 who were enrolled in 11th grade last year, but
they make up 18 percent and 22 percent, respectively, of the roughly 12,000
students who have not passed MCAS.
At the very least, however, state officials hope the new
statistics dispel the notion that students who face being denied diplomas are
overwhelmingly students of color who come from poor homes - even as it confirms
that minority and low-income students struggle more with the test than whites
and students from wealthier homes.
''The African-American and Hispanic numbers show a
disproportionate representation,'' said state Board of Education Chairman James
A. Peyser. ''But it's not as if there's been this radical sorting of kids by
race or ethnicity, or even by income level.''.....
Boston Globe, 10/10: State predicts drop in graduates;
decline may be due to MCAS demands
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/283/metro/State_predicts_drop_in_graduates-.shtml
State officials predicted yesterday that the percentage
of freshmen who graduate four years later will drop from about 75 percent to
roughly 71 percent with the class of 2003, the first class required to pass MCAS
to graduate.
Some of the expected drop may be due to more students
being retained in the ninth grade - ballooning the size of the freshman class -
because of tougher standards accompanying the MCAS, state officials said. The
state released the figures yesterday as officials attempted to outline how the
high-stakes test has affected students as they progress through high school....
.... In a news briefing yesterday, state officials stressed that the prediction
that 55,185 students would graduate this year was based only on past graduation
and enrollment figures. The figure also presumes some improvement between now
and June, as the roughly 12,000 students remaining in the class of 2003 who have
yet to pass the MCAS get two more chances to retake the test. If graduation were
today, only 51,649 students - or 66 percent of the original freshman class -
would get a diploma, based on MCAS....
.... The report also detailed district-by-district retention rates and showed
that some urban districts are holding back an increasing number of
ninth-graders. More schools are finding that some students need five years, not
four, to meet the tougher high school standards, Driscoll said. In Boston, for
instance, about 25 percent of freshmen were held back in 2000-2001, compared to
17.5 percent the previous year.
State Representative Peter J. Larkin, who cochairs the
Legislature's joint education committee, said the rising retention rate and
rising number of students who don't make it to 10th grade are ''a very big
concern.'' The issue will be a key piece of two forums on the Massachusetts
Comprehensive Assessment System exam that the education committee is planning
this month at Roxbury Community College....
This story ran on page B1 of the Boston Globe on 10/10/2002.
AP wire/New Bedford Standard-Times, 10/10: Fifth
year could be norm for MCAS stragglers
http://www.s-t.com/daily/10-02/10-10-02/a08sr038.htm
See also, Daily Hampshire Gazette, 10/10:
Fifth year eyed for MCAS stragglers
http://www.gazettenet.com/10102002/schools/740.htm
.... [Acting Gov.] Swift, Education Commissioner David Driscoll and Board
of Education Chairman James Peyser, in a news conference to offset criticism
that grade retention is artificially inflating MCAS scores, said a fifth year
might become the norm for struggling students.
"Typically, you would hold them back and have them take
the same courses again, and the kids would become bored even more," Driscoll
said. "The difference is the retention is now within a context. Kids are being
held back because they need time to address the standards."
Now, he said: "There's a very clear plan now in high
schools as to what to do with those retained kids. I think it will lead to more
and more success academically." ....
.... The state reports predicts that about 70 percent of the class of 2003,
based on enrollment numbers when they were freshmen, will graduate. That's down
from the 75 percent average over the past decade, and 76.8 percent of the class
of 2002.
Critics said holding kids back rarely proves successful.
"Retention in grade is increasing in Massachusetts and
that bodes ill for kids' future," said Walt Haney, director of Progress Through
the Education Pipeline Project at Boston College. "Having kids (being retained)
is one of the strongest predictors of them dropping out."
But in releasing an analysis of enrollment, dropout rates
and grade retention going back a decade, officials yesterday said there's a
trend -- established before MCAS -- of some kids failing to graduate.
Historically, 25 percent of kids who start the ninth
grade fail to graduate, the report said.
They sought to downplay criticism that more kids are
dropping out and being retained because of the high-stakes test.
Driscoll said the 2003 graduation rate is affected by 990
students in the 2002 class who used to be in the 2003 class.
"There are kids who straddle grades," he said. The
resulting negative effect on the 2003 graduation rate, he said, "will be a
one-time phenomenon."
Swift said parents would rather hear that their child is
being held back than be given a diploma they don't deserve. ....
.... In the past six years, the percentage of Bay State students held back in
ninth grade increased from 6.3 percent in 1994 to 8.4 percent last year....
.... Anne Wheelock, a policy analyst for Haney's group, said it's disappointing
that the predicted graduation rate for the class of 2003 is barely better than
Louisiana's.....
Boston Globe, 10/9: Freshmen, once again; with MCAS
looming more students held back
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/282/metro/Freshmen_once_again-.shtml
As more Massachusetts high schoolers tackle the MCAS
graduation requirement, school districts are holding back an increasing number
of freshmen, delaying their promotion to the 10th grade until they're better
prepared for the high-stakes exam.
School officials in several districts said they have
toughened standards for ninth grade - a year that historically has been a major
hurdle for students. ''We put up a gate at the ninth grade,'' said Worcester
School Superintendent James Caradonio. ''If you're not prepared to go into the
game, why send somebody in?''
In the last six years, the percentage of Massachusetts
students who failed ninth grade has climbed from 6.3 percent in 1995-96 to about
8.4 percent in 2000-2001, according to state Department of Education figures....
.... [Some education researchers] warn that keeping back struggling
ninth-graders could create an inflated success rate on the 10th-grade MCAS. And
they point to studies showing that high school students who are retained are at
greater risk of dropping out.....
.... Jane O'Leary, East Boston High School's assistant headmaster, is torn. She
knows the research showing students who are held back are more prone to drop
out, but believes it may be unwise - and discouraging - to expect students who
fail algebra, for example, as ninth-graders to take the 10th-grade MCAS.
''The MCAS test is based on algebra and geometry,''
O'Leary said. ''It's not fair to the student no matter what his age to put him
in a room for two to three hours and give him a test that he doesn't know a
single question on.'' ....
.... Until recently, the Nauset school district did not hold back high school
students at all from grade to grade, said Superintendent Michael Gradone. Now
students must pass a certain number of courses each year. At one point, the
district awarded teachers raises based on higher MCAS scores, but Gradone said
the incentive did not prompt schools to hold more students back....
.... Challenges vary, but students generally fail ninth grade because of chronic
absenteeism, a lack of credits, or a failing test score....
This story ran on page B1 of the Boston Globe on 10/9/2002.
Plymouth Old Colony Memorial, 10/9: Students don't
score on SATs
http://www.southofboston.com/display/inn_3headlines/happenings1oc.txt
PLYMOUTH (Oct. 9) - Scores on the 2002 SAT were down, and
no one can put their finger on why.
Assistant superintendent Christine Tyrie told school
committee members Monday night that, over the last 10 years, scores between the
town's two high schools have been up and down on the SAT, until last year.
"In 2002, they were down, down and down," Tyrie said.....
.... There are variables that affect test scores from year to year, Tyrie said.
Both schools had an increased number of students take the SAT in 2002. With more
students taking the test, they may not all be gearing up to apply to competitive
colleges, she said. Taking the test is good for students, even if they don't
plan on applying to competitive colleges. However, some of these students do not
take the test as seriously as others and can sometimes decrease their school's
mean scores, Tyrie said.....
.... Tyrie said one explanation might be that schools are spending more time on
the "high-stakes" MCAS testing. That leaves less classroom time to devote to SAT
preparation. This year's seniors are the first who must pass the English and
math MCAS to graduate....
Springfield Union-News, 10/9: Fail: School seeks MCAS
waivers
http://www.masslive.com/metrowest/unionnews/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1034154690250074.xml
WEST SPRINGFIELD - The High School will automatically
apply for waivers for more than 50 seniors in danger of not receiving diplomas
because they have not passed the MCAS tests.
The appeals will be made regardless of the students'
eligibility for such waivers under state guidelines. They must be filed by the
end of the month. ....
.... Because of the sheer volume of students who may not graduate, McKenzie said
the state could end up granting waivers to students who don't currently meet
eligibility requirements. She said the high school should forward appeals for
all seniors in case that scenario takes place.
To be eligible under current state requirements, a
student must have failed the test three times, have a 95 percent attendance
record and have scored at least a 216 on the English or math portions of the
test that they failed. McKenzie believes the state may not hold to the 216
threshold.
Also, each student must secure a letter from a teacher in
the failing subject attesting to the student's competency and provide evidence
by submitting results from other standardized tests or work samples.....
.... There are 66 seniors who've yet to pass the test. Ten students are
attending school in other districts, however, and 10 others joined the school
district just last year, Delisle said.....
.... Meanwhile, Director of Curriculum Elayne Gumlaw asked the School Committee
to approve spending $4,000 in grant money to hire a "district assessment
analyst" to examine test results from the first year the test was administered
to the present to pinpoint where weaknesses may lie in the curriculum.....
Springfield Union-News, 10/9: MCAS: Officials to visit
Mohawk Trail district
http://www.masslive.com/hampfrank/unionnews/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1034154630250074.xml
BUCKLAND - The Mohawk Trail School System, where some
students have requested officials drop the Massachusetts Comprehensive
Assessment System test as a condition of graduation, will be getting a visit
from the MCAS's chief defender, state Commissioner of Education David P.
Driscoll.
The high-stakes test isn't the only thing on the agenda
for Driscoll's Oct. 15 visit, though officials have scheduled a 7 p.m. forum
just to discuss the MCAS. The school district has solicited a batch of questions
from the public in advance of the forum, which will also hear from the group of
students who proposed defying the state MCAS graduation requirement....
.... In May, a group of students, mostly graduating seniors, asked the Mohawk
Trail Regional School Committee to challenge the state and graduate students who
may not have passed the high-stakes test.
Fifteen students in the senior class have not passed the
test or subsequent re-tests, and could go without diplomas, Genovese said.
The student group has urged the committee to adopt a
resolution similar to one adopted by the Hampshire Regional School District last
year. Driscoll has derided the Hampshire resolution as irresponsible and
illegal....
Springfield Union-News, 10/9: Freshmen sharpen study, test
skills; rades are the number one factor colleges look at," Monster.Com's Bradley
J. Van Dussen said.
http://www.masslive.com/holyoke/unionnews/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1034154636250074.xml
SOUTH HADLEY - A motivational speaker delivered a slew of
tips for South Hadley High School freshmen Monday in a talk titled "Making High
School Count," including how to study and how to take tests.
Bradley J. Van Dussen made his pitch as part of a program
the Web site Monster.Com based in Cincinnati, Ohio, offers free to high
schools. Monster.Com specializes in linking employers with job applicants.....
Boston Globe, 10/8/02: Spending, MCAS among challenges for
next governor
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/281/metro/Spending_MCAS_among_education_challenges_for_next_governor-.shtml
A decade after the Commonwealth began its quest to close
the gap between stellar suburban schools and failing city ones, taxpayers have
spent billions of dollars on education reform. And barring a last-minute policy
change, the state for the first time will deny diplomas next spring to thousands
of students who haven't passed the MCAS exam, which is supposed to measure the
success of school reform.
But nobody pretends that the gap between suburban and
urban schools has been closed, and at time of drastically shrinking budgets,
the next governor will have to decide what else Massachusetts can do to pull up
low-performing schools.....
.... A federal lawsuit filed earlier this month might allow the next governor to
dodge the MCAS bullet. The class-action suit alleges that the state has failed
to prepare many students for the test and that it discriminates against
minorities, the disabled, and non-English speakers. The lawyers for the
plaintiffs want the judge to strike down the graduation requirement and to
mandate better teacher training.
The lawsuit (or a gubernatorial reprieve) might save Terry Gonzalez, a
senior at West Roxbury High School who wants to become a funeral director.
Gonzalez, a diligent student who is captain of the West Roxbury football team,
is still 2 points shy of passing the math portion of the MCAS exam. If he
doesn't pass a retest in December, he won't receive a diploma in June, and his
career plans will be in jeopardy.
''If you do all your schoolwork and pass your classes,
why do you have to pass this test to get your high school diploma?'' he said.
''I'm all about school. ... I want to be somebody.'' ....
..... The state has pledged to help failing students prepare for the exam for as
long as they want to keep taking it - even after their classmates graduate - but
the next governor will have to decide how much the state can afford to pay for
that help. Over the past three years, the Legislature has spent $130 million on
MCAS tutoring, but tight budgets will make it difficult to keep those dollars
flowing.....
This story ran on page A1 of the Boston Globe on 10/8/2002.
AP wire/Daily Hampshire Gazette, 10/8: State
expands online MCAS tutoring
http://www.gazettenet.com/10082002/schools/684.htm
.....This is the second year the DOE has signed a $300,000 contract with the
Princeton Review, but this year students in the classes of 2004 and 2005 are
joining the class of 2003 as eligible to participate.
"This will allow our students to log on anytime, day or
night, and ensures that each one has every possible opportunity to work on their
problem areas, and as a result, boost their performance on the MCAS exam,"
Commissioner David Driscoll said in announcing the expansion Monday....
..... The eight-month program gives students free access to a designated Web
site to improve math and English skills. The class of 2003 is the first required
to pass the exam to graduate.
Students can take tests, find resources and get feedback
on their strengths and weaknesses. Last year, 12,000 students used the online
tutorial, officials said.
Critics have argued that non-white students and students
in low-income households have less access to computers....
..... Acting Gov. Jane Swift last year pledged that students who failed the MCAS
would get one-on-one tutoring or have 20,000 tutors in place in the summer of
2001, but failed to reach that goal.
Brockton Enterprise, 10/7/02: Error leads to MCAS
miscalculations [for sped students]
http://enterprise.southofboston.com/display/inn_news/News/news03.txt
MCAS really counts for high school seniors approaching
graduation in June, but some numbers reported in the most recent MCAS results
just don't add up.
The explanation appears as fuzzy as the numbers meant to
identify special needs students who took the 10th grade test in May.
The state Department of Education says school districts
did not fill in the "bubble" that identifies students in the special needs
category; some school leaders believe the problem occurred when data was
retrieved from the test booklets during the scoring process.....
.... Take Blue Hills Regional Technical School, where the state reported no
special needs students took the test.
"That certainly is an error," said Deborah DePaolo, the
school's assistant superintendent and principal.
"There are 82 students in the class of 2004 who took the
grade 10 MCAS in May, 2002, who were identified as students with special
education needs. That's 38 percent of the total enrollment for that class."....
.... In Brockton, where the number of special needs students tested was also
underreported, said Eligijus Suziedelis, administrative assistant to Supt.
Joseph Bage. He said 72 special needs students took the test; the state reported
that number to be 33 students. Another 10 special needs students took
alternative assessments which were not included in the recently released
results.
"As individual students are administered MCAS tests,
their scoring sheets and booklets are coded by staff as belonging to students
with IEPs," Suziedelis explained. "When the tests are scored by the vendor, the
codes determine a count of results as being from SPED kids.....
....."There has to be a reporting snafu somewhere outside of the local
district," Suziedelis said. ....
.... Ronald LeBretton, assistant superintendent at Whitman-Hanson Regional High
School, was also unable to explain the numbers reported for his district. The
state reported two special needs students took the test; LeBretton said 23
special needs students were listed on school records.
"We definitely have more than two special needs kids who
took the test," LeBretton said. "I'm at a loss to explain why that number shows
up." He said the school does not have an opportunity to review the data sheets
filled in by students.
The state Department of Education, however, says it is
the districts' responsibility.
"We rely on the school districts to provide the accurate
information," said DOE spokesman Judith Reardon. "There's a certain bubble the
school has to fill out on one of the fact sheet to say how many students there
are in special education. For us to go back and check those numbers would be
extremely costly. It's very unlikely the department would have made the mistake
in the numbers."...
.... Other communities that showed a significant drop in special education
students in the class of 2004 who were tested in eighth grade and 10th grade
were West Bridgewater, where the state reported two special needs students were
tested this year compared to eight in 2000; Freetown-Lakeville with 11 this year
and 33 two years ago; Middleboro, with 10 this year, 44 two years ago.
Southeastern Regional Vocational Technical School had one special needs student
reported on the recently-released results.
The school's number was not available.....
Boston Globe West Weekly, 10/6/02: Vocational students
still faring worse [on MCAS]
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/279/west/Vocational_students_still_faring_worse+.shtml
Studens at technical schools have consistently
experienced higher failure rates than at other high schools.
That, administrators say, is because many technical
school students are in special-education programs, or they have reading problems
or other disabilities that prevent them from performing well on standardized
tests.
So, it is not surprising that technical schools
throughout the suburbs are closely watching Beacon Hill for relief, hoping that
other achievements can be measured in awarding diplomas to the state's technical
students.
They also are watching a federal civil rights lawsuit
filed last month in Springfield....
.... Meanwhile, vocational school administrators, including those at Keefe Tech,
are considering awarding degrees outside the state's mandatory MCAS framework.
''We've done virtually everything possible,'' said Paul
Bento, superintendent at Keefe. ''We've aligned our curriculum with state
frameworks, we've offered after-school remediation, summer remediation.But we're
dealing with almost 50 percent special-education students here. Realistically,
we have a number of kids who will probably never pass it.''
State Senator Susan Fargo, a Wayland Democrat who
represents a number of western suburbs, plans to refile a bill that would exempt
from the MCAS-passage requirement all special-education students, students who
speak English as a second language, and vocational- school students.
This story ran on page W1 of the Globe West section on 10/6/2002.
Boston Globe North Weekly, 10/6/02: MCAS curve seen
as steep but surmountable
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/279/north/MCAS_curve_seen_as_steep_but_surmountable+.shtml
As they settle into a new school year, high school
students in the suburbs north of Boston are sharpening their No. 2 pencils,
solving complex math problems, and writing lengthy compositions in preparation
for this year's MCAS exams...
.... 'We have a good handle on the curriculum,'' said Janice Gauthier, head of
the English department at Everett High. ''We have MCAS days on Mondays. The
department heads write out the lessons and give them to the teachers so all the
students are learning the same lesson on the same day.....
.... For the vast majority of the region's school districts the improvements
were hard-won. During the intervening years - 1999, 2000, and 2001 - several
school districts, including the industrial cities of Everett and Chelsea and the
tonier communities of Newburyport, Hamilton, and Wenham experienced wide
fluctuations in their failure rates. The shifts were most pronounced in smaller
school districts.
''When you have a sample of students under 100, the
failure rate can change dramatically based on the scores of a very small number
of students on either end of the spectrum,'' said Rockport Superintendent Joseph
Lisi, who oversees a school district of 1,046 students, including a senior class
of 68. Based on a handful of scores, Rockport went from 173d in the state
rankings for the 10th-grade MCAS in 2001 to 46th this year.
But what explains the rise and fall of scores in larger
districts?
According to some school administrators and teachers, the roller coaster ride in
student achievement can be attributed to two factors: A changing student
population and adjustments that the state Department of Education has made to
the test over the years, particularly to the math portion of the exam....
.... Some teachers said that challenge is becoming harder to meet as the test
evolves.
In June, a group of math educators asked that state Education Commissioner David
P. Driscoll review the 10th-grade math exam, which they said took many students
more than twice the recommended time to complete.
'The math segment has become increasingly difficult,''
said Karen Hamond, head of the math department at Everett High. ''This last test
went beyond competency. I felt it stretched the limits. For example, one of the
questions used a Greek letter. That fouled up some of the students because they
had never seen it before.''....
This story ran on page 1 of the Globe North section on 10/6/2002.
New Bedford Standard Times, 10/10, Fairhaven
parents decry MCAS requirement
http://www.s-t.com/daily/10-02/10-10-02/a01lo002.htm
FAIRHAVEN -- With School Committee members entertaining
the idea of bucking a state mandate that makes passing the English and math
portions of the MCAS a graduation requirement, a forum last night was supposed
to offer information about the exam, and what consequences the district would
incur if it defied the state. ....
.....On one side was Department of Education representative Jeffrey Nellhaus
defending the test's value. On the other were students, parents and educators,
who spoke with one voice against withholding diplomas from those who do not pass
the exam before completing their senior year. ....
..... "You make it sound like this test is a beautiful thing that the DOE has
given our children, but what about those kids who only get a certificate, and
then they have to go out there and try to get a job? What about them?" said
Claudia Kirk, a parent of two children in Fairhaven schools. ...
.... "This is not about a test; it's about meeting a standard, and the test is
the best vehicle we have to ensure that students are meeting that standard,"
said Mr. Nellhaus. "Besides, this is not a one-shot deal."
He said that for students who do not pass the exam, the
test is not the only road to a diploma. Students can turn in a portfolio of
their work for evaluation, but only after they have taken and failed the MCAS
three times.
"The idea is to build into this piece of paper something
of some value," he said.
Of nearly 400 such portfolios submitted during the last
round of MCAS testing, only one was deemed diploma-worthy, said one parent.
If students fail to pass the exam before the completion
of their senior year, they will be encouraged to stay in high school for as many
years as it takes them to pass the exam, said Mr. Nellhaus.....
.... "People are learning on the backs of these children," said Pat Estrella,
another Fairhaven parent. "There should be a solid process in place before we
start making these children victims." ....
This story appeared on Page A1 of The Standard-Times on October
10, 2002.
New Bedford Standard-Times, 10/6: Talks begin on
ignoring [MCAS] requirement
http://www.s-t.com/daily/10-02/10-06-02/a03lo012.htm
FAIRHAVEN -- To abide or not to abide: That is the question.
....
"There is angst in the community," said Fairhaven School
Committee Chairman Mark D. Sylvia, noting that many citizens worry about the
requirement's impact. And at least some committee members support exploring
disregarding it....
.... He suggested that changing the MCAS regulation through the state
Legislature may be a better way to go.....
....But, he noted, the MCAS exam could be used differently. One idea would have
MCAS become an SAT-like indicator. "It would go into your record and people
would look at it, but it wouldn't prevent you from getting a diploma."
This story appeared on Page A3 of The Standard-Times on October
6, 2002.
Cambridge Chronicle, 10/2: MCAS scores skewed by
boycott
http://www.townonline.com/HiasysTools/PrinterFriendly.bg/www.townonline.com/cambridge/news/local_regional/cam_covccmcasboycott10022002.htm
Cambridge schools may have fared better than the
MCAS scores suggest, if you take into account the large number of students who
boycotted the test here and brought their school average down. Some parents say
reports of a "slight improvement" in MCAS scores here this year missed the real
story.
The large percentage of students who boycotted the tests
brought the average scores down significantly - yet another example of how
scores released by the state may not be an accurate reflection of a school's
performance.
Tim Groves, principal of the King Open School, agrees
that students here performed better than test results show. At King Open, 28
percent of the students did not take the MCAS test last year - almost 50 percent
of the school's eight-graders boycotted the test.
"Almost each year that the MCAS is given, a significant
number of parents had their kids not take the test - for whatever reason,"
Groves said. "Those who boycott the test are given a 200 - the lowest score -
and then scores are averaged. So the number released by the state are very
different from what you would get by averaging scores of students who took the
test."....
..... Meg Bond, a Cambridge parent whose fifth- and eighth-grade children have
been boycotting the test at the King Open for the past few years, said, "We
boycott and I feel it's a very important way to express our concern about the
exam. [For example], the scores should separate children who do not take the
test. Also, the emphasis on results of the test is problematic. The King Open
has a creative, strong and supportive curriculum and the scores reflect very
little of this."
Other parents like Rod Kessler and Sarah Abrams believe
that children should not run away from the MCAS and avoid "schoolyard
conformism." But they also believe that the MCAS doesn't throw any new light on
performance and that teachers already know which kids need the most help. Their
concern is that MCAS takes away valuable teaching time and educational leaders
must learn that testing is not the same as learning.
School Committee member Alan Price shares this concern.
"Science and math teachers have deviated from the regular
curriculum to the MCAS curriculum months before the test to get a percentage
jump in scores and I'm not sure that's a wise move. The MCAS curriculum is not
as valuable as the curriculum for regular learning," he said....
Cambridge Chronicle, 10/2: [Cambridge] fields low dropout
rate
http://www.townonline.com/cambridge/news/local_regional/cam_newccmcas10022002.htm
The city's MCAS results may be less than inspiring but
there is still something to be proud of where Cambridge schools are
concerned....
......
[T]his district has one of the lowest dropout rates among the
ninth graders who sit for the MCAS.
"While Cambridge students drop out at about the same
statewide rate, very few drop out at the ninth or 10th grade," said Wheelock.
"Weaker students in Cambridge persist longer and this is probably
under-appreciated."
Wheelock thinks, for better or for worse, Cambridge is
testing a much broader range of students than, say, Boston, where many students
drop out before taking the MCAS.
"All high school level scores are not reliable because in
some districts, the students have disappeared," she added. "Cambridge could
probably improve scores if more students were held back in the ninth grade but
grade retention does not help grade improvement and that's to Cambridge's
credit."....
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