 
|
|||||||||
              
|
Study finds1 in 5 students doing poorly
Thursday, August 26, 1999 By Carmen J. Lee, Post-Gazette Education Writer
A new study on primary and secondary schools in southwestern Pennsylvania contained a fair amount of good news, but it also revealed that about 20 percent of fifth-, eighth- and 11th-graders in the region read and perform math poorly.
The results of the study were released yesterday by the Education Policy & Issues Center during a presentation at the Duquesne Club, Downtown. Among those in attendance was state Education Secretary Eugene W. Hickok.
"We're producing failures in every school in southwestern Pennsylvania. This is about a failure of the elementary and secondary education system," said Alcoa Chairman Paul O'Neill, who is co-chairman of the center. "And it's not the fault of the teachers. It's the broader community's fault because we get what we tolerate."
"No one can want any child to fail," said Linda Dickerson, the other co-chairman.
Formerly known as the Allegheny Policy Council, the Education Policy & Issues Center is a nonprofit agency that brings together community leaders and educators to examine education issues. The agency also encourages the development of policies locally and statewide to ensure that youngsters will develop the skills they'll need.
The first annual Regional Education Index Report represents the center's inaugural analysis of education quality in southwestern Pennsylvania. It examined 705 schools and 118 school districts in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Washington and Westmoreland counties.
With the help of Christopher Nelson, an adjunct assistant professor of public policy and politics at Carnegie Mellon University, the Regional Math/Science Collaborative of Southwestern Pennsylvania and other individuals and organizations, the center evaluated the performance of the region's students and schools based on 10 educational areas, or indicators.
The indicators -- early reading and math performance; full-day kindergarten; small class size in early school years; reading, writing and math performance; course completion, strength of instruction, strength of curriculum; strength of school environment; post-high school preparedness; and school completion -- were selected because they are considered to be pivotal factors in a student's long-term success.
Those areas also were determined to be ones for which data could be collected to study and which could be measured progressively over time, said the center's executive director, Karen McIntyre.
For this first report, regional performance in several areas was compared for the 1995-96, 1996-97 and 1997-98 school years.
Among the positive findings were that 67 percent of the region's high school graduates in 1998 took the SAT exam and earned average scores of 510 on the verbal and 510 on the math sections. The SAT is used to evaluate how well students are prepared for college.
Statewide, 71 percent of graduates took the exam that year and achieved average scores of 497 on the verbal and 495 on the math sections.
The report found that 99 percent of the region's teachers in 1998 were certified in the subjects they taught and that 45 percent held graduate degrees.
Also in the study were the results for some schools on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment that were better than expected when considering factors such as the percentage of low-income students and those living with one parent.
Based on a formula that incorporated such socioeconomic issues, the study had predicted that fifth-graders at Belmar Elementary School in Homewood, where 79 percent of the pupils are low-income, would have an average reading score on the state exam of 1158 for 1996-98. The actual score was 1280.
Fifth-graders at Johnston Elementary in Wilkinsburg had a predicted reading score of 1107, but their actual average score on the test was 1217.
Still, the report revealed that between the 1995-96 and 1997-98 school years, the number of fifth-graders across the region classified as "non-readers" or "non-math performers" hovered between 19 and 21 percent for each category.
"Non-readers" were defined as those who showed a very limited understanding of an article on their reading grade level that was included in the state exam. These youngsters made several errors and their responses were either illegible or showed no relationship to the text.
"Non-math performers" submitted responses to math problems on the state test that were entirely incorrect, including calculations, procedures and explanations.
For eighth-graders during those years, the percentage of "non-readers" ranged from 21 to 23 percent while the percentage of "non-math performers" hovered between 20 and 23 percent.
Among high school juniors, 21 to 23 percent were poor readers between the 1995-96 and 1997-98 school years while 24 to 27 percent were poor math performers during those years.
In addition to reporting the good and bad news in education, the study also included educational goals for each of the 10 indicators. It recommended questions the community might consider asking when pushing for improved educational quality.
Under early reading and math performance, for example, the goal is that every school in the region will adopt a policy of "zero tolerance" for students not being able to read or do math by the end of fifth grade.
Among the recommended questions for the community were: "How many fifth-graders in my school are reading and doing basic math well?" and "What are my school's reading and math goals?"
McIntyre said the report was the center's "signature piece," and the annual updates will be used to shape the organization's focus for each year.
For 1999-2000, for example, the center's theme will be a zero tolerance of fifth grade reading and math failure.
Pittsburgh Acting Superintendent Helen Faison said many of the study's results reflected findings city district staff were addressing already. She pointed to as an example the district's literacy emphasis that began last year.
Faison added that she believed that rather than view the report as a criticism of the region's educational progress, it should be considered as providing direction for making improvements.
Hickok, who flew to Pittsburgh yesterday for the presentation, said the poor performance of 20 percent of the region's students in math and reading reflected the national average.
But he commended the center and local community leaders for "drawing a line in the sand and saying that this is not acceptable."
"Overall my sense is that this is a fantastic first step, but I worry that it will stop here," Hickok said. He added that he hoped the report would stimulate discussions in homes, churches and other community settings about improving education.
McIntyre said copies of the study had been sent to every school district in the nine counties so they can be distributed to teachers and parents. The study can also be found on the center's Web site, www.epi-center.org.
Roundtable discussion sessions in which at least one of the indicators is covered in-depth are being scheduled in each county, she said.
The center's board members and staff also plan to begin presenting the report's findings to intermediate units, superintendents, school boards and parent-teacher associations across the region.
The center is looking for a sponsor to support a televised town meeting on the study, McIntyre said.
|
||||||||
