When the state unveiled the 2004 school report cards last Thursday, Forest Lake Area Schools parents saw some new numbers attached to local schools. And they are numbers the district believes unfairly represent its schools. ìThe purpose of the rating system is to give parents a way to compare schools,î said Lynn Steenblock, Forest Lake superintendent. ìUnfortunately, the system doesnít take into account the many things that make a great school.
ìWhile nearly 90 percent of our students excel, it only takes one small subgroup of kids to take us from being an excellent school to being labeled underperforming.î
As part of the federal No Child Left Behind legislation the state has created report cards, featuring a five-star ranking system, for every school. Much like the system used to rate restaurants or hotels, the state awards stars, with five stars being the best, for each school based on proficiency and participation on Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments, as well as attendance and graduation rates.
A rating of one star is given to schools not making ìadequate yearly progressí toward better test scores and other performance measures for two or more consecutive years. Two stars are given to schools not making ìadequate yearly progressî for one year.
Schools that did make ìadequate yearly progressî are awarded three stars, with up to two more stars being granted if the school meets the following criteria: 30 percent or more students scored at the top level of the MCAs, or if less than 10 percent of its students score in the two lowest levels, or if they have outstanding performance compared with schools of similar size or with similar numbers of low-income students.
How they performed
All of Forest Lake Area schools met or exceeded targets in the areas of test participation, attendance and graduation rates.
Each of the elementary schools also met the target MCA proficiency rates in both math and reading, earning them star ratings of three or higher.
Southwest Junior High was awarded three stars in reading proficiency and two stars in math.
Forest Lake High School, Century Junior High and the Area Learning Center were awarded two stars in reading and math, indicating they did not make adequate yearly progress in at least one subgroup last year.
As a result, the names of all four secondary schools appear on the stateís Needs Improvement list.
ìThe list was created to hold schools accountable, but the system has some flaws,î Steenblock said. ìBecause one small subgroup of students struggled to meet the targets, an entire school has been labeled as under performing.î
New way to judge
For the first time, secondary schools are being judged under the No Child Left Behind legislation. Using the MCA exams as the ruler, schools are being measured on how well their students, broken down into nine different subgroups, are doing.
The groups include All Students, Special Education, Limited English Proficiency, Free and Reduced Lunch, White, African-American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native American and Hispanic.
In order to be considered a successful school, students in all of the subgroups must reach a minimum proficiency level on math and reading tests, and must meet state goals in test participation, attendance and graduation rates. If even one subgroup does not make adequate yearly progress, then the entire school is labeled ìunder performing.î
The Area Learning Center was on the list for the All Students and the White subgroupís math and reading proficiency.
Southwest Junior High appears on the list for the Free and Reduced Price Lunch subgroupís math proficiency. The Southwest students did make Adequate Yearly Progress in reading, but missed the mark in math by only one index point, scoring 63.27 against a target of 64.27.
Forest Lake High School and Century Junior High missed the mark in the Special Education subgroup in both math and reading proficiency.
ìOverall, our students exceeded the targets set for them by the state,î Steenblock said.
ìThese results show we are moving in the right direction and reaffirm our commitment to improvement. But to grant our secondary schools only two stars because a few kids struggle to meet those high expectations is a punitive result for otherwise excellent schools.î
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