SLIPPING SCHOOLS
Poor merit-exam results are main reason 4 in 10 high schools in state fail to meet federal goals
December 1, 2007
More than four out of every 10 public high schools in Michigan -- including some of the highest-performing schools in the state -- fail to meet the goals of the No Child Left Behind law, mostly because of students' disappointing performance on a new high school exam.
Schools faltered in nearly every area, some failing to meet adequate yearly progress because most of their populations failed the test, some because they didn't have enough students tested, and in many cases, because scores of special-education students were too low.
In all, 43% -- 489 out of 1,149 traditional high schools, charter schools and alternative schools -- have been identified for improvement, while 57% did well enough to avoid sanctions.
Still, of the 358 schools identified as not making adequate yearly progress for at least two years, only 141 face penalties that grow in severity the longer they fail to meet goals -- from offering parents the choice to send their children to another school in the district to a restructuring plan that could include replacing staff.
The rest, because they don't receive federal school improvement funds, only have to notify parents of the school's status and create, then implement, an improvement plan.
Shirley Martin, a parent of two children at Southfield-Lathrup High School, which was listed for improvement, said NCLB is forcing schools to focus efforts on children such as her sons, who are economically disadvantaged.
"Unless they start paying attention ... and try to make everything evened out, not everybody has a chance to succeed," Martin said.
In releasing the high school report cards Friday, Michigan Department of Education officials said the large number of schools not meeting the goals was expected because of the state's switch to the Michigan Merit Exam, a collection of tests that includes the ACT.
"It's a college-entrance test, and a lot of kids were not prepared for it," said Kathleen Straus, president of the State Board of Education.
But the report cards illustrate a disturbing trend in Michigan. While elementary and middle schools have shown improvement in meeting the No Child Left Behind goals, high schools have been moving in the opposite direction. Since 2003, when 288 schools were identified for improvement, the number has grown nearly 70%.
For some of the schools on the list, test scores weren't an issue. At Athens High School in the Troy School District, 28 out of the 32 special-education students were tested, shy of the 95% required. For that reason, the entire school was listed as needing improvement.
"By every measure, Troy and Athens are two of the strongest high schools in the nation," said Tim McAvoy, district spokesman. "The issues we have ... are not performance-related, but rather with participation. That's an issue we're going to have to look at."
But performance of some groups of students was an issue in many schools. NCLB requires schools to have acceptable scores not just for all students, but for subgroups of students who in the past were easy to ignore. If those subgroups -- minority students, special-education students, poor students or students with limited English skills -- don't meet the goals, the entire school fails.
In at least three districts -- Utica Community Schools, L'Anse Creuse Community Schools and Farmington Public Schools -- officials said schools were listed because of the writing scores of students with special-education needs. In all three cases, scores were invalidated because students didn't write enough in response to a writing prompt.
"The students were actually there but they didn't do enough of the writing portion of the test for it to count," said Keith Wunderlich, L'Anse Creuse assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.
Despite the invalidation of the scores, Utica Superintendent Christine Johns said she was encouraged by the performance of special-education students. By exposing them to a more rigorous curriculum, she said, "they are performing better than they have previously."
Some schools were new to the list, such as Andover High School in Bloomfield Hills Schools. That school was impacted by the performance of its students with disabilities, but it was unclear whether it was the scores or the percentage of students tested.
But Hanan Wardia of Bloomfield Township, whose son is a 10th-grader with special needs, said she thinks schools such as Andover would see their results improve if they focused on mainstreaming special-education students in general education classes, rather than putting them in special programs.
Her son began a mainstreamed program this year, and the results have been good.
"I do feel that he does a lot better and he's learning a lot more in a general classroom," Wardia said. Bloomfield Hills' other high school, Lahser High, also did not meet the standards.
While much of the cause for schools being listed as not meeting adequate yearly progress had to do with test scores or too few students taking the test, at South Lyon High School, it had to do with bureaucracy.
Students with disabilities can receive accommodations to take the test, such as being given more time. In South Lyon's case, the state approved some accommodations while ACT approved others. But the district was told only one agency could approve accommodations if the students were going to be in the same room, as was the case.
"It was one of those things you learn about life that just isn't fair," said Jean Schmeichel, assistant superintendent of instruction.
Contact LORI HIGGINS at 248-351-3694 or lhiggins@freepress.com.
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