Do You See What I see?

I was so hoping the new administration in Washington would take some of the emphasis off standardized testing in the schools. Maybe they will eventually, but it certainly is not happening yet. There is federal money available to help some ailing schools in California and presumably in the rest of the country as well. However, schools that are “lowest performing” on test scores, are forced to take some draconian measures in order to get the money.

According to this morning’s SF Chronicle: (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/03/26/MNA31CK4FP.DTL)

Schools on the lowest-performing list each will be eligible for up to $2 million in federal Title I money annually for three years if they initiate one of the following reform strategies starting in 2010-11:

Turnaround model: Replace the principal and at least half of the existing staff. The new principal would have flexibility to hire and to set the school calendar and budget.

Restart model: Convert to a charter school.

School-closure model: Shut down and send the students to higher-achieving schools.

A transformation model: Replace the principal, reform instruction, increase learning time and provide operational flexibility.



Maggie’s High school, Mission High is one of those schools. However because the principal has been in place less than two years he does not have to worry about losing his job. I am glad. He is a good principal and Mission High is a vibrant community with dedicated teachers and staff. I have no idea what happens next, though I am sure the school will not close or become a charter school.

Admittedly, my involvement with the school is limited to the Special Education arena. I do not know anything about how the students do on standardized tests (other than what I read) nor do I know what is going on in the classrooms. However, this is not the dark ages. The special ed students are part of the schools’ population and Maggie’s classroom is right next to classes of regular ed students. I have met several of the teachers, and I feel safe in my assumption that they are doing the best job possible.

I can tell also you this, the energy and activity in the hallways is like that of many high schools. I see essays about Haiti and posters for student government elections on the bulletin board in the hall and read about the basketball team’s success on the court. The student body is comprised of every ethnicity known to man and I cannot even estimate how many different languages are spoken in the hallways of the school or the homes of the students. The kids are respectful and polite to me and to Maggie and her peers. During class time, the hallways are quiet and during free times, they are teeming with energetic teenagers and all the drama and angst that come with that.

I’m willing to bet the smartest kids go to good colleges and those who don’t’ achieve fail to graduate – just as in every other school in the United States. I am willing to bet that some kids get into trouble for bad behavior and do not do their homework, that others are excellent student citizens and that some parents are involved but many are not, just as in every other school. I am also willing to be that Mission High has more English language learners than many high schools and there just might be a few reasons they have not excelled on standardized tests. Despite those reasons, however, the scores are improving. It is a long road back and the school is making its way.

The federal money is needed and welcome. I am sure the school will do whatever they have to do to get the influx of resources. There certainly will not be any coming from the State of California, so it will be the only money around. I wonder, however, how long the federal and state governments will continue to use one measure - standardized test scores – to measure how well a school is doing. As a parent of a child who has never taken a standardized test of any kind (by my choice), it automatically eliminates my child from the equations.

It is not practical, I know, but these bureaucrats need to walk through some of these schools before they order ½ the teachers fired or close the whole thing down. Walk through the halls and see what I see and tell me this isn’t working.