Shocking Results For Connecticut Education
Beautiful Mystic Seaport
Though I’ve lived in many areas of the USA, including Massachusetts, California, Florida, Texas, and now South Carolina, I always had an idealized image of Connecticut. You know, Ivy League, sophisticated and even, hoity-toity.
For some reason, Connecticut has always epitomized sophistication and old money to me.
Having driven through a few times, I can tell you that it is scenic, even bucolic in areas, and very beautiful.
That’s why I was as shocked as the people of Connecticut to read the results of the 2008 ACT Testing there.
According to The Hartford Courant:
“Results from the 2008 ACT college admission test show that many Connecticut high school seniors are “appallingly” unprepared for college-level work, according to a state report.”
“Of the 8,159 students who took the test, [only] 35 percent of white seniors, 18 percent of Hispanics and 9 percent of African Americans were ready for college-level work.”
“It’s an appalling figure to look at,” said Frank W. Ridley, chairman of the Board of Governors for Higher Education. “Basically it says that, at the very best, only one-third of our students are succeeding.”
The achievement gap between whites, Hispanics and African Americans mirrors what is occurring throughout the rest of the country. And even white students gave a really poor showing.
No wonder colleges and businesses are having to spend billions of dollars annually for remediation. Kids are not learning the necessary skills to compete in life, business or academia during their high school years.
What is ACT?
You probably already know the difference between the ACT and the SAT, but here’s a refresher for both of us.
- The ACT Test is a curriculum-based college entrance exam. It tests what students have learned in high school.
- The SAT Test measures a student’s aptitude for learning.
So, just like the rest of the country, the poor scores by all groups show that too many Connecticut students are arriving on college campuses poorly prepared and must enroll in remedial classes to catch up.
Things must change in education in the USA!
Brennan
Education Shoots Self In Foot – Again!
Education Shoots Self In Foot – Again!
The highly touted Diploma Project is being abolished in the Los Angeles School District because of budget cuts.
The L.A. Times ran the story, after Superintendent Ramon C. Cortines made the announcement.
The Times explains the Diploma Project:
“The 3-year-old, $10-million Diploma Project, which assigns counselors to 49 high schools and 31 middle schools, was launched in the wake of bad publicity over alarming dropout rates and the district’s determination to confront them. Schools with the highest dropout rates, according to state figures, include Jefferson High in South Los Angeles, listed at 52.1%, and Belmont High, west of downtown, at 51%.”
“Diploma Project counselors work with students derailed by such issues as failed classes, behavior problems, poor attendance and failing the state exit exam, which is required for graduation. The advisors also help students who have left school to return or transfer elsewhere . . .”
Supt. Cortines is a highly-respected educator and faces an enormous task trying to straighten-out the HUGE mess in L.A. schools.
Budget shortfalls have caused thousands of teachers across the state to be given their “pink slips”.
But in a time of soaring dropout rates, it doesn’t make sense to me to eliminate a program that is working so well.
Speaking as the grandmother of California students, I have a suggestion:
How about thinning the top heavy administration, and keep teachers in the classroom instead?
As for the Diploma Project . . .
Well, The Kingsland Plan has already successfully proven that more counselors working with problem and/or troubled students is a workable solution.
Why eliminate programs that have been PROVEN to be successful?
Instead, why NOT eliminate bulky overhead and cushy administrative positions that DO NOTHING to improve education?
What do you think?
Brennan
Coast to Coast Education Problems
Sad State of Education on Both Coasts
Just in case you thought education issues were getting better, think again!
The stories on Education News.com highlight problems on BOTH coasts! The first story I want to share tells about the disastrous drop-out rates in Los Angeles and the second story talks about horrible achievement gaps in Philadelphia.
In the first story, Mitchell Landsberg, staff writer for the Los Angeles Times reports:
“A study released Thursday confirms that many California dropouts give school another try. But the California Dropout Research Project also reports that even dropouts who go back to school appear to stand little chance of success in college. And in an economy that increasingly prizes academic success, the outlook is bleak for those who don’t return to school at all.”
“Kids who drop out of school are at risk in general — we know that,” said Russell Rumberger, a professor at UC Santa Barbara who leads the dropout project. He added he was alarmed by the study’s finding that one in three of the students who dropped out of 10th grade in 2004 were doing nothing four years later — not going to school or working.”
The article goes on to explain only one in five drop-outs go back to obtain a GED, and only 54% of those obtain that GED.
Even worse, 90% of those who obtain their GED don’t go further. They either drop-out of college, or never even attempt to enroll.
And the financial future for each of those individuals is bleak.
Meanwhile, In Philadelphia
On the opposite coast, Kristen A. Graham, staff writer for The Philadelphia Enquirer, shares some shocking statistics released by the Philadelphia School District.
” One in 10 white students is classified as mentally gifted; just 3 in 100 black students are.”
“Black and Latino students make up 79 percent of the district’s 167,000 students, but make up just 54 percent of students in the district’s prestigious magnet schools. Those groups make up 90 percent of all children labeled “emotionally disturbed,” and most of the students at the district’s lowest-performing schools.”
The article goes on to explain how mis-judgement on the part of administrators, coupled with the limitations of archaic laws, combine to keep the ‘achievement gap’ in place.
The situations in our schools are getting worse, not better.
The ‘Hot Topic’ of Education Reform
Education Reform is now a ‘hot topic’ since President Obama was elected, and selected, Arne Duncan as his new Secretary of Education.
The fact that billions of dollars of taxpayer money in the new stimulus plan has been earmarked for public schools, also places education in the forefront of the news.
It’s vitally important that every parent, teacher and taxpayer pay close attention to what decisions our politicos make about spending that money.
And we need to mobilize to FORCE positive change!
Brennan
Part of Obama’s Education Plan Explained
Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education
NBC’s Chuck Todd wrote about the Wednesday night Charlie Rose interview of President Obama’s new Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan.
During the interview, Duncan explained part of the new president’s proposed agenda for public schools AND utilization of stimulus monies.
Part of the interview . . .
DUNCAN: I think our schools should be open 12, 13, 14 hours a day. So it’s not just length –
ROSE: So eight to eight, or something like that?
DUNCAN: Yes, and let me tell you what — not just lengthening, obviously, the school day, but a wide variety of after school activities: drama, arts, sports, chess, debate, academic enrichment, programs for parents, GED, ESL, family literacy nights, potluck dinners. At home, we attached health-care clinics to about two dozen of our schools. Where schools truly become the centers of the community, great things happen. So I think we need the schools open much longer hours, and by the way, we don’t have to do this all ourselves as educators. You can bring in great nonprofits: the YMCAs, the Boys and Girls Clubs, mentoring and tutoring groups to co-locate their services and bolster the community from the school. And every neighborhood in our country, you have schools. In every school, you have classrooms, you have computer labs, you have libraries, you have gyms, many have pools. Those buildings don’t belong to you or I. They don’t belong to the unions. They belong to the community. We have these great physical resources, and we even maximize them.
ROSE: Keep them open 12 hours a day, 12 months a year.
DUNCAN: Yes.
ROSE: Twelve hours a day, 12 months a year.
DUNCAN: And I would go to six or seven days a week, not just Monday through Friday.
Wait a minute! Wait a minute! 12 hour school days! WHAT!?!? We can’t even keep kids in school now!
But Duncan explains that he and the president envision a public school becoming a community center.
This means that when they advocate lengthening the school day, they’re not necessarily calling for more public money to be spent on after-school programs.
They are talking about, literally, using the building as a community center.
Yep, sounds like a great utilization of resources!
As a matter of fact, in The Kingsland Plan, Don shows how part of the plan brings communities and schools closer together. Also, the plan utilizes school facilities to conduct biweekly parenting classes in the evenings. These would alternate with parent/community concern and curriculum meetings, held in those same schools in the evening or on the weekend.
However, in this time of politically-correct policies, how do communities (or Big Brother) decide WHICH GROUPS will utilize these great public facilities?
O.K. YMCA, tutoring and health clinics sound ideal, but what if a subversive group like the Boy Scouts wants to use the building? The ACLU and other PACs will be outraged if equal access is given to a group that discriminates against women (not allowed, except as Den Mothers) and homosexuals (not allowed at all).
Policing “political correctness”, in the use of public places, will give the ACLU, and other special interest groups, a stronger grip on our educational system. Which is the last thing we should want.
I’m all for good utilization of resources, but . . .
Tell ya’ what Mr. Duncan. Why don’t you spend your efforts and our stimulus money FIRST on changing EDUCATION, to get improved LEARNING results?
Let’s stop the escalating dropout rates! Let’s have ALL of our students who DO graduate able to read and write and think.
THEN, if you’re gonna take the decision out of the hands of local communities, let’s concentrate your energies and our taxpayer money, on deciding who gets to set up programs and use the buildings after the school day is done.
JMHO,
Brennan
Obama Says Public Schools Must Improve
Schools Must Improve
In the talk, Obama . . .
“called on teachers unions, state officials and parents to end the “relative decline of American education,” which he said “is untenable for our economy, unsustainable for our democracy and unacceptable for our children.”
Obama made several excellent points:
- Washington has been trapped in debates that have paralyzed progress and perpetuated our educational decline.
- He encouraged experimentation in the public school system, including proposals to extend the school day.
- He wants to eliminate limits on the number of charter schools.
- He proposes merit pay for good teachers, and eliminating bad teachers.
- He called for states to adopt uniform academic achievement standards.
- He stated he plans to expand several federal grant programs, including Pell Grants for college and Early Education programs.
Vouchers, charter schools, and merit pay were all discussed, even though there are strong detractors and proponents of each system in both parties.
While calling for rewards for good teachers, Obama said he would give all teachers a chance to excel, or leave.
“States and school districts must be “taking steps to move bad teachers out of the classroom.”
“If a teacher is given a chance but still does not improve, there is no excuse for that person to continue teaching.”
“I reject a system that rewards failure and protects a person from its consequences.”
Some of his suggestions I agree with, and some I am vehemently opposed to. (Don explains our reasons for our views in Set Our Teachers FREE!
While most of President Obama’s comments seem fair and even-handed, it remains to be seen how well his ideas can be implemented.
With all the money being thrown at the Department of Education, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.
One thing President Obama said in his talk that I think every American can agree with is . . .
“The bottom line is that no government policies will make any difference unless we also hold ourselves more accountable as parents.”
So true! So true!
Brennan
Join Forces & Fight For Education!
I want to keep you informed about problems in American education and I try to keep myself informed as well. What we know is that one person cannot force the necessary changes, but together we can do a lot.
I’m very happy to inform you that parents, teachers, taxpayers, and yes, internet marketers are becoming informed and joining forces to help our students – and the future of our country.
As I meet these eager and devoted education advocates, I want to help in any way I can. I will be sharing more and more information and contacts with you as I learn them.
THIS MEANS WAR! – against mediocrity, drop out rates, violence and all the other ills that are plaguing our public education system.
By joining forces, we can win for our students and our futures.
We can do it!
Brennan
