Two things:

1) AYP is not practical. For example, Hamilton Southeastern passed every category but is considered a failing school because it failed in one category: special education math with 41 students (40 is the cut). So if HSE “lost” two students, it would be a passing school. But labeling the school failing does a diservice to all the other students and teacher who make HSE an envy of other schools. (I have never worked there.)
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2) At North Central, Warren Central and Ben Davis, whites pass AYP, but blacks do not. At Carmel, HSE, and Fishers, both blacks and whites pass.
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So let’s call AYP what it is: GED101 for urban blacks.

Jacob hit a home run and is precisely right. Plus, the statewide testing was made tougher last year. I’m all for tough tests, but let’s be reasonable here.

Just so you all know: thanks to Sue Ellen Reed, Indiana’s statewide testing is among America’s toughest.

The annunal tragedy in these reports, is that thousands of good teachers get blamed. Some are partly responsible, but this is a large problem we can all own.

Bennett is nothing more than an opportunist here. Kinda cheesey, actually. Cheap political soundbites don’t do much to solve problems.

We solve this one by: smaller classrooms, good teachers being rewarded, bad teachers being coached and then shown the door if they can’t improve, and parents stepping up in a big way.

Also: canning bad administrators, of which there are many. And letting non-teachers do most of the paperwork teachers now perform, which is mostly stupid, and robs them of time with kids.

Supt. Bennett: yu just showed your true colors. You get some more chances, because you’re new. But don’t piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining.

Abdul,

Have you read William Julius Wilson’s “More Than Just Race: Being Black and Poor in the Inner City” (Norton: 2008)? Or anything by him? Thoughts?

Interesting comments and Jacob how did you propose to “lose” those two students? Run them out of town? Ship them to another district? Clarify your point for me so I don’t make a wrong conclusion?

There are so many issues here it would take a book.

Abdul you are always ranting about education how about we arrange a round table at the cigar bar sometime soon to talk about education and how we can fix it for all kids. And yes I still need to have a chat with you about your “lead paint” comment.

Peace

BigDawg…many schools have gotten creative in this testing b.s. Perhaps they could have lost the tests of two students and they would have fallen below the required minimum for the category to count. They could have “forgotten” to code a couple of tests as special needs. They could have gotten the erasers out and made sure that those students improved on tests.. Other schools are getting very creative and they could have done the same. This is what happens when you have high stakes meaningless tests.

Also, I think the cut is 30, not 40, as I earlier wrote. … Get Creative has some ideas, but creating/enforcing a higher rate of suspension/expulsion would be one. In addition, if a high school passes AYP for graduation and fails AYP in categories, what does that say about the students who did work hard, who took care of their business? Do you really want to be an acheiving student at a failing school?

I concur 100% w/ TA’s recommendations, albeit prioritize parenting. How can we have such thorough and deliberative expectations of public education with such lowly societal standards of parenting? “Pay me now or pay me later”, was the pitch of changing your oil filter to avoid replacing the engine. We can have societal expectations of parenting or we can keep paying later.

Incentives for good parenting should become the norm, a la tax incentives for charitable donations. It is the government’s social and economic business (the government being the representative body of the people) to enourage, if not force/mandate, certain societal behaviors — good and involved parenting should be.

The only problem I see with intervention is intervention.

Replace admin and/or staff? With what, exactly? No guarantees there, I can assure you.

Take over ops? Uh-huh. Have to see the logistics of that first.

Reduce funding? Yeah, that would help. Finish the school off, that is. Then what have you got?

Maybe I’m missing something here, but if not, then this is just smoke and mirrors.

Abdul, Do you care to weigh in on this subject, perhaps over the weekend? What do you see Daniels doing politically?