NYT Op Ed piece by Diane Ravitch:
"... the accounts of miracle schools demand closer scrutiny. Usually, they are the result of statistical legerdemain."
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/01/opinion/01ravitch.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha212
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One of the schools with results questioned in the article, Urban Prep, was cited by PPS in support of single gender education.
For another school cited in the article, Miami Central, math results at least may actually be fairly good; given the Florida location English scores may be low because it is a second language for students. But without city or statewide scores for comparison, it's hard to tell.
In math Miami ranks 430 out of 469 Florida high schools. 56% in Miami met state math standards, 16% for reading.
I like the last paragraph:
"If every child arrived in school well-nourished, healthy and ready to learn, from a family with a stable home a steady income, many of our educational problems would be solved."
Is this an admission to the belief that the problem can't be solved? by schools?
Hecks no! It is, however, an acknowledgement by a former Bush-era fan of No Child Left Behind that there are plenty of things affecting a child's education over which public school teachers have zero control.
What are the situations over which teachers need to have control in order to be effective?
A+ Schools, today, gave PPS Board Members a B- rating as a function of the Board Watch process.
What can Board Members do to improve the process, or are we waiting for a "miracle"?
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