The Daily Report Card

--- Monday --- March 3, 1997 --- Vol. 7 --- No. 20 ---

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THE NATIONAL UPDATE ON AMERICA'S EDUCATION REFORM EFFORTS
A service of the National Education Goals Panel

============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"Music is one of the few art forms that occurs over time. It
requires mental imagery, transforming mental images and being
able to reason in sequence. It seems as if music and science
share some things in common."
Psychologist Frances Rauscher of the U of Wisconsin. (#3) _______________________________________________________________
| A service of the National Education Goals Panel |
| Published by the Education Policy Network |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Wash, D.C.; 20037; 202/632-0952 |
| The DRC hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgement. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
|_______________________________________________________________|

============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============

GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
NATIONAL READING TEST: Public's time for comment. (#1)

GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE
NAEP RESULTS IN: Vital signs improving. (#2)
THE PIANO: One way to improve math prowess. (#3)
HAWAIIAN MATH: Parents not tempted by its beauty. (#4)
A FOR ALIGNMENT: The Alpha of curriculum reform. (#5)

CHARTING A NEW COURSE
CHARTER SCHOOL TROUBLES: D.C. educators get cold feet. (#6)

===== GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP =====

*1 NATIONAL READING TEST: PUBLIC'S TIME FOR COMMENT
A series of meetings designed to solicit public input on
President Clinton's call for a voluntary, national reading exam
for fourth-graders is underway, sponsored by the U.S. DoEd (DoEd
press release, 2/25).
During his State of the Union address, President Clinton
issued a "challenge" to the nation: "Every state should adopt
high national standards, and by 1999, every state should test
every fourth grader in reading and every 8th grader in math to
make sure these standards are met."
Riley announced that the DoEd this fall will award contracts
to develop the exams. According to the release, the contracts
will require test developers to convene independent panels of
successful reading and math teachers, parents, business
representatives, state and local officials, and other experts to
advise them on content, assessment and interpretation of results.
The tests, which are expected to be available in spring 1999,
will be conducted under license agreements with test publishers,
states and school districts "that spell out all procedures to be
followed in administering and scoring the tests," writes the
release.
The new reading exam will be linked to the National
Assessment of Educational Progress and the math test to the Third
International Mathematics and Science Study. From the release:
"Thus, parents and teachers will be able to compare performance
to nationally recognized reading standards and internationally
established standards for math."
The public meetings are being held at the DoEd in
Washington, D.C. Two already took place, while the final meeting
is scheduled for 4 March, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

===== GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE =====

*2 NAEP RESULTS IN: VITAL SIGNS IMPROVING
A higher percentage of this year's fourth-, eighth-, and
twelfth-graders achieved at least basic math skills compared to
last year's test takers, according to the latest National
Assessment of Education Progress report. But few of the NAEP
test takers achieve at world-class levels.
"Our national scores may be rising, but we still have a long
way to go," said Ed Sec Richard Riley. "We are still far behind
world-class standards, and certainly that is not good enough."
The percentage of fourth-grade students performing at a
basic level or above rose from 59% in 1994 to 64% in 1996.
However, only 25% of eight-graders and one in five fourth-graders
reached the next level of competency called "proficient." NAEP
classifies test results into three categories: basic, proficient
and advanced. The L.A. TIMES explains that the "content of the
NAEP test is based on a set of criteria for math courses issued
by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics in 1989."
which called for more complex "real world" problem solving,
rather than rote memorization of formulas (Colvin, 2/28).
According to the WASH POST, many educators point to higher
math standards and more rigorous curricula adopted in schools
nationwide as the reason for the trend in NAEP improvement
(Sanchez, 2/28). Critical to math success at the higher levels
of proficient and advanced, they say, is that students take
algebra before entering high school, which is the norm in other
industrialized countries. However, Riley noted that only 20% of
American eighth-graders currently take algebra.
Gaps in achievement continue to exist among racial groups.
For example, while 76% of white fourth-graders nationwide who
took the NAEP math test demonstrated basic skills, only 41% of
Hispanic students and 32% of black students did. Yet, there has
been an increase in scores for minority students. There is not a
gender gap among eighth- and twelfth-grade boys and girls,
according to the NAEP data.
The report also presents state-by-state data. N.C. led all
states with a 17-point gain. Calif.'s fourth- and eighth-graders
performed poorly. Fourth-grade students performed lower than
students in 32 of the 47 states and the District of Columbia
where students took the exam. For Calif. eighth-graders, 49%
could not solve a problem that involved money, nor could they
identify the fraction that represents the shaded portion of a
rectangle; the nationwide figure was 38%.
Other NAEP findings: Colo., Conn., Ind., Tenn., Texas and
W.V. join N.C. in reporting significant increases in the
percentages of fourth-graders who scored at or above the basic
and proficient levels from 1992-1996 and Md., MIch., Minn., Neb.,
N.C., Wis., Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., Del., Fla., Hawaii., Ind.
Ia., Ky., N.M., N.Y. Ore., W.V., R.I., Texas and Wyo., reported
significant increases in percentage s of eighth-graders who
scored at or above the basic and proficient levels from 1990-
1996.
Calif. math reform probably will come under attack given the
NAEP data, writes the L.A. TIMES. Reform opponents claim that
the program does not pay enough attention to basic skills. Gov.
Pete Wilson (R) last week concurred, saying the NAEP results were
"deplorable and intolerable." He added that there is a "need now
more than ever to teach basic computational math skills in the
classroom."
Superintendent of Public Instruction Delaine Eastin used the
NAEP data to reiterate her call for more demanding academic
standards and statewide tests to assess student performance.
Eastin: "Absent a clear set of standards, many districts don't
know what they're supposed to do to improve. All we know is that
overall California is pretty much at the bottom of the barrel and
we can't say who's doing well and who's not."
Single copies of the report are available while supplies
last through the National Library of Education; 800/424-1616. It
also will be available on the Internet at www.ed.gov/NCES/naep.

*3 THE PIANO: ONE WAY TO IMPROVE MATH PROWESS
Preschoolers who participated in piano classes produced
higher test scores on a spatial-temporal ability test than those
who did not, according to a new study released by researchers at
U of California Irvine and the U of Wisconsin (Maugh II, L.A.
TIMES, 2/28). An increase in spatial-temporal ability is linked
to excellence in science and math.
The study of 78 children in preschools in Santa Ana, Long
Beach and West Covina, Calif., found that the results were
"independent of socio-economic class and parental interest,"
notes the paper. The children were randomly placed into four
groups. One received daily singing lessons and two 15-minute
private piano lessons per week at school, with a piano made
available if the children expressed an interest to practice on
their own. The second group received only singing lessons.
Group three took two 15-minute private computer lessons per week,
while the fourth group received no extra instruction.
Children were given four tests of mental ability, including
one that measures spatial-temporal reasoning, before the study,
writes the paper. After six months, students who had piano
lessons scored an average of 34% higher on the spatial-temporal
ability test than their counterparts. Students in the other
groups showed no improvement on any of the tests, reports the
TIMES.
"These children have plastic [malleable] brains that are
just forming connections," said psychologist Frances Rauscher of
the U of Wisconsin. "We're influencing pattern development in
the cortex through neural training." She added that "music is
one of the few art forms that occurs over time. It requires
mental imagery, transforming mental images and being able to
reason in sequence. It seems as if music and science share some
things in common."
The paper reports that the study was funded by the National
Piano Foundation and the National Association of Music Merchants.
*4 HAWAIIAN MATH: PARENTS NOT TEMPTED BY ITS BEAUTY
Some Fairfax County, Va., parents are protesting the
district's pilot of a new style of teaching math (Barnes, The
FAIRFAX JOURNAL, 2/24). The program, called Hawaiian math, is
named after the U of Hawaii, where researchers, working under
funding provided by the National Science Foundation, developed
the approach in the late 1970's.
Under Hawaiian math, students are given math problems and
then told to develop rules as they work through the problem,
writes the paper. In traditional math classes, students first
learn the rules, then practice solving the problem. Teachers
using Hawaiian math also have their students work in groups,
where classmates "compare answers and problem-solving methods,"
according to the JOURNAL. The intention is that students would
better understand the process involved in solving math problems.
Teachers who teach Hawaiian math courses are required to
take 45 hours of training, according to Tom Nuttal, math
coordinator for Fairfax County Public Schools. The paper also
notes that tutors who have not been exposed to Hawaiian math
principles have difficulty helping a student in a Hawaiian math
course.
Parents, many of whom are befuddled by the new teaching
method, expressed concern that their children would not learn
math concepts. They also complained that the district did little
to explain the new program to them. "If you have something good,
you put it our there. You don't hide it," said Jean Neun, a
parent of a Fairfax High student. "It may be good, but parents
need answers and they need to be told in advance." According to
the paper, Nuen removed her son from two Hawaiian algebra classes
he unknowingly had enrolled in at school.
Nuttal said the program is criticized because it "looks
different from traditional math courses, but when parents come
and sit in on a class they have a different attitude." He added:
"Even teachers who don't like the method say they notice kids who
come into algebra II after Hawaiian algebra I remember a lot more
than traditional algebra I students."
Test scores show that Hawaiian math students score "at least
as good" as their counterparts who take traditional math classes,
writes the paper. Nichole Landsdowne, a Centreville High algebra
teacher, observed that Hawaiian math is "good for some who learn
better visually with charts and graphs but often bad for those
who need more structure or who have poor study habits."
Mount Vernon High school officials decided to offer fewer
Hawaiian math courses and, instead, blended the approach into
traditional math classes, reports the paper.
Parents still are concerned. Lynn Caswell, whose daughter
will attend Fairfax High next year: "When somebody tells you
about a weird program and your kid's going to be the guinea pig
and you get no answers from the school, who would want their kids
involved?"

*5 A FOR ALIGNMENT: THE ALPHA OF CURRICULUM REFORM
While alignment among numerous elements of a school system's
policy principles is key for education reform, a National
Institute for Science Education BRIEF hones in on two of the most
critical for students achievement: expectations and assessments.
The BRIEF, written by Norman Webb, head of the Strategies
for Evaluating Systemic Reform project of the National Institute
for Science Education, concedes that alignment between
expectations and assessments is difficult for several reasons.
First, expectations and assessments tend to be "expressed in
several pieces or documents, making it difficult to assemble a
complete picture," writes the BRIEF. It also is "difficult to
establish a common language for describing different elements of
policy . . . The same term may have very different meanings when
used to define a goal and when used to describe something
measured by assessment." Third, a constantly changing policy
environment can lead to confusion, as "new goals can be mandated
. . . while old forms of assessment are still in place."
The BRIEF notes three major approaches to assuring
alignment, determined by a review of current practice and
literature: sequential development, "a set of standards,for
instance, might be converted directly into specifications for
developing an assessment;" expert review, in which a panel of
experts "reviews the policy elements and makes some judgment on
their alignment;" and document analysis, in which alignment
depends on a "coding and analyzing [of] the documents that convey
the expectations and assessments" -- an example is the Third
International Mathematics and Science Study, in which national
teams were "successfully trained ... to perform document analyses
comparing curriculum materials with assessments used in the
study."
The BRIEF suggests five criteria to "assure agreement among
expectations and assessments." The criteria were developed by
reviewing national and state standards and alignment studies,
writes the BRIEF. The criteria include: content focus;
articulation across grades and ages; equity and fairness;
pedagogical implications; and system applicability.
In conclusion, the BRIEF notes that "alignment of
expectations and assessments is a key underlying principle of
systemic and standards-based reform."
Copies of the NISE BRIEF titled "Determining Alignment of
Expectations and Assessments in Mathematics and Science
Education," are available free-of-charge by contacting: National
Institute for Science Education; University of Wisconsin-Madison;
1025 W. Johnson Street; Madison, Wis. 53706; 608/263-9250, or at
www.wcer.wisc.edu/nise. NISE's Internet address is:
niseinfo@macc.wisc.edu
The report is a collaborative effort between NISE and the
Council of Chief State School Officers.

===== CHARTING A NEW COURSE =====

*6 CHARTER SCHOOL TROUBLES: D.C. EDUCATORS GET COLD FEET
After the alleged assault on a WASH TIMES reporter by the
head of the Marcus Garvey Public Charter School, the Washington,
D.C., school board is re-evaluating its charter school process
(Wilgoren, WASH POST, 3/3). One fallout of the slow-down policy
is the withdrawal of KIDS 1 Inc., a "well-regarded" company that
was planning on opening the door's of its D.C. charter school for
special education students this fall.
Recently, the D.C. school administration had been "taken
over by an emergency trustee board and a chief executive, Julius
W. Becton, Jr.," writes the paper. Becton hired a former Capitol
Hill staff person to oversee charter school activities, and
Robert Childs, a newly elected Board of Education member, was
named chairman of the committee that approves charter schools.
The new team is in the midst of reviewing the city's five
charter school applications that already were approved by the
former school board, writes the paper. "We had to go back and
start from the very beginning," said Childs. "We're moving as
quickly on this as we possible can. We want them to open, but we
have to make sure that it's done correctly." So far, only two of
the five charters have opened their doors -- Marcus Garvey and
Options Public Charter School.
However, David Winikur, CEO of KIDS 1, said the system is
taking too long to come to closure on his charter school
proposal. He has laid off staff and informed parents who were
ready to enroll their children in his school that KIDS 1 would
not be opening this fall. "Every day that our school is open ...
without having students, it's a tremendous drain on our
resources," said a KIDS 1 spokeswoman. "We're just at the point
where we can't continue diverting our time from all the other
special education students' at the company's other schools."
According to Winikur, communication continues to be a
problem even after the new team arrived at the city's education
headquarters. For example, Winikur has been virtually unable to
contact Richard Wenning, the aide Becton hired to oversee charter
schools, because Wenning still does not have a direct phone line.
Another problem: representatives of several charter schools said
their request for federal grants had not been processed by the
school system because the person in charge retired in December
and failed to pass on the applications, reports the paper.

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John Kurilecjmk@ofcn.org