13 Responses to “VA Schools Report Card: 2008-2009 Adequate Yearly Progress results”

1. posted by brenda p at August 27, 2008 11:19 pm :
   

   The following message has been posted to the DOE site:

   NOTICE: We are currently experiencing heavy traffic to our Web site due to the posting of Virginia School Report Card and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) results. Please be patient and continue to try to open the reports. Once you are able to open the document you are seeking, please download it to your computer’s hard drive or print it out and log out of the document. This will allow others to access the information.

2. posted by brenda p at August 28, 2008 8:34 am :
   

   In today’s P-I:

   Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Alvera Parrish said that it’s important for the public to understand that, overall, the testing scores in the schools are improving.

   “At J.E.B. Stuart we came very close to passing,” Parrish said. “We were just .07 percentage points away from making AYP in reading.” Parrish said that 69.02 percent of students passed the reading SOL tests at J.E.B. Stuart; 69.09 percent passing would have been needed for the school to make AYP.

   Testing supervisor Gwen Price said that the school also increased its number of students passing math by 46 percent.

   “We’re not where we want to be,” Parrish said. “But we’re not where we were either.”

3. posted by John H at August 28, 2008 8:46 am :
   

   Other area schools did not make it. I asked last year that we pull out the stats and show people where were 5 years ago and where we are today the improvements are there, and inside the system it is noticed, but outside the walls of PCPS we are just failing

4. posted by brenda p at August 28, 2008 9:07 am :
   

   Indeed, the P-I article is titled: Most local school districts [not just Petersburg] miss AYP.

   The article also notes that the ‘bar’ is set higher each year: “The 2007-2008 benchmarks for achievement in reading and mathematics were each four points higher than during the previous school year.” This could certainly help explain why the schools’ advances haven’t been easy to translate into the desired AYP outcomes quite yet. My hope is that the schools/students don’t dwell on the AYP results but rather take pride in the progress they have realized and simply keep it up, as after all, the students only stand to gain from each forward step.

5. posted by shawn at August 28, 2008 9:21 am :
   

   Well, I timidly suggest that REL elementary has some cause for celebration, and that it should be mildly celebrated.

   As John H. says, it would be fairest to look at more precise numbers, and over a course of years before making any condemnations, but I certainly don’t want to hear what a “assistant superintendent for instruction” has to say about the matter, as such a position, esp. for a small district, screams BLOATED BUREAUCRACY, and, hence, part of the problem.

   At least the title isn’t “assistant superintendent for community relations.”

   John H says that “other area schools did not make it.”

   I will just say that that is not surprising.

   I mean no respect to john h., I think if the community was more like him, we would have a lot less problems hereabouts.

6. posted by John H at August 28, 2008 10:55 am :
   

   We have to figure out ways to improve, and that comes from getting some of these parents off their butts and into the classrooms.
   My latest suggestion is that we make it a requirement that parents volunteer at least 8 hours in their childs school during the school year. That is only one full day plus a part of another, but I will give you the full 8 if you do the one day.

   Going into a school and seeing how your child interacts cuts down on idle time that is being wasted in the classroom and creates a better learning environment. Hence the ability to obtain more knowledge for testing

7. posted by shawn at August 28, 2008 1:55 pm :
   

   You realize I meant to say “I mean no disrespect…,” of course.

8. posted by brenda p at August 28, 2008 1:57 pm :
   

   Hm. But wouldn’t a revolving door of parents in the classroom be a distraction? Plus perhaps interfere with the teachers’ ability to establish themselves as authority in the classroom? (As an educator at the university level, I could see welcoming a parent on a one-off basis for a variety of reasons, but I would think a constant flow of parents would undermine achieving a certain rhythm and tone. But then, I have no experience at the primary school level…) Maybe discussion of what level of parental participation would be helpful and welcome is a good question to put before the parent - admin committee (I forget what that group is called).

9. posted by GiGi at August 28, 2008 4:31 pm :
   

   I am not an educator. I am a parent of now three teenage children that have gone to inner city schools. I believe that most importantly at a primary school level where there is poverty which always results in a mostly uneducated society. With this said, if you have a parent that is willing to volunteer and help these teachers that are..1. Not paid accordingly 2. Overwhelmed by a lack of attendance, lack of help from the parents with studying, ensuring homework assignments are done 3. Lack of funds to obtain appropriate materials that are needed for a generation that is SEVERELY behind on their benchmarks.

   The positive influence of parents that are successful, educated, interested in helping these students. Utilization of the parents rather than a revolving door. Tutoring, community involvement, mentoring. These kids need to know that an education is their right and that they are able to achieve.

   Most of these children do not have the home life that will allow them to succeed. A parent that cannot read.. is unable to help a child that is learning to read. A teacher that is not trained in learning disabilities and is teaching a “general population” classroom, that should be classified as a learning disabled class, solely on the fact that they are so far behind, is unable to help a class of 20 with out an assistant and the proper training.

   I personally believe that we need to look at charter schools. This has proven to work in many other small cities that have experienced the same problems.

   Separate of this subject.. but pertaining to education…
   Why do we have like 90 slots at the Appomattox Governors School and only like 8 at Maggie Walker Governors School. Does are City not understand that they are not the same school, they focus on different subjects?

10. posted by John H at August 29, 2008 7:46 am :
    

    Now the more engaging the parents are the better off the student can be. The parent will work as an aide for the day or time that they are there. You will have assigned work to do that will be handed to each parent by the principals.

11. posted by brenda p at August 29, 2008 10:04 am :
    

    Moderator note: some folks have written in asking why they don’t see their comment above.

    Short answer: comment moderation is now on.

    Related answer: I’m now teaching again, on top of everything else I’m doing. I’ll be putting less time into this site, focusing on posting calendar items and events to the main section, but reducing the time/effort that the comments have represented. I may turn comments off altogether; haven’t decided. To be determined based upon time considerations.

12. posted by The Voice at September 30, 2008 8:04 pm :
    

    things are even worse in South Carolina, where 4-in-5 public schools failed to make AYP!

13. posted by shawn at October 1, 2008 11:01 am :
    

    Things have ALWAYS been worse in south carolina….

    I have read transcripts of senate debates from, like the 1830s involving south carolina reps. They sounded like raving lunatics compared to the Virginia men, esp. if someone mentioned quakers.

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