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--- Wednesday --- September 16, 1998 --- Vol. 1 --- No. 54 ---
NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS PANEL
NEGP Weekly
THE UPDATE ON AMERICA'S EDUCATION REFORM EFFORTS
In cooperation with the DAILY REPORT CARD
SCHOOL ENROLLMENT KEEPS GROWING
Total public and private school enrollment this fall reached a record 52.7
million, surpassing last fall's all-time high by 500,000, according to data
recently released by the U.S. DoEd's National Center for Education
Statistics. The report anticipates that new enrollment records will
continue to be set for at least the next eight years.
Most of the growth is concentrated in large states like Calif. and Texas.
How- ever, the majority of states, and many suburban districts, face an
increasing number of school-age children.
And more doesn't necessarily mean merrier when teacher shortages loom and
buildings need to be renovated or replaced. A 1995 GAO report estimated
that $112B were needed to upgrade America's school buildings. Ed Sec
Richard Riley noted that 2.2 million additional teachers will be needed over
the next decade to "accommodate the rising student population and to replace
those retiring or leaving the profession."
__________ __________
| SPOTLIGHT |
| |
| FINDING DIRECTION |
| |
| "The direction in which |
| education starts a man will |
| determine his future life." |
| (Plato, "The Republic") |
| |
| The direction young black |
| students must take to score |
| high on the SAT is that |
| which points to enrolling |
| in rigorous high school |
| courses and engaging in |
| intellectual extra- |
| curricular activities, |
| according to a yet-to-be- |
| released study by the Melon |
| Foundation and the Urban |
| Institute. |
| |
| The Melon-Urban Institute |
| study reviewed College |
| Board data from about |
| 100,000 black students who |
| took the SAT in 1996. An |
| overwhelming number of |
| those who scored at the top |
| took calculus and honors |
| English, while pursing |
| after-school activities |
| such as journalism and |
| debate. (#2) |
|_____________________________|
============== QUOTE OF THE DAY ==============
"There is no one solution."
Joanne McDaniel, research director of the Center for the
Prevention of School Violence, on reducing the number of students
bringing firearms to school. (#4)
_______________________________________________________________
| (c) by the Education Policy Network, Inc. |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Washington, D.C. 20010; 202/724-0124 |
| EPN, Inc. hereby authorizes further reproduction and |
| distribution with proper acknowledgement. |
| Publisher: Barbara A. Pape |
|_______________________________________________________________|
============== TABLE OF CONTENTS ==============
GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
SAT SCORES: Tale of two cities. (#1)
CLOSING THE SAT'S RACIAL DIVIDE: What does it take? (#2)
GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE
EVERYDAY MATH: It rules in Pittsburgh. (#3)
GOAL SEVEN: SAFE, DISCIPLINED AND DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS
CRIME PREVENTION: North Carolina's on guard. (#4)
GOAL EIGHT: PARENTAL PARTICIPATION
NATIONAL STANDARDS: They work for parents, too. (#5)
===== GOAL THREE: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP =====
*1 SAT SCORES: TALE OF TWO CITIES
While SAT scores for ethnic and racial groups have inched up over
the years, there still remains a wide gap between the scores of
Hispanic/Latino and black students and their white and Asian-American
counterparts, according to the College Board. "This year's college-bound
class typifies the growing challenge to higher education," said Donald
Stewart, president of the College Board. "We see a significant increase in
the number of well-prepared students, but we also see more students with
insufficient academic preparation."
College Board data shows that the average SAT math score is 512 this
year, the highest in 27 years and one point above last year's level.
However, the average SAT verbal score is 505, the same as last year and just
6 points above the record lows of 1991 and 1994. Among racial and ethnic
groups, average verbal scores are down for Hispanic/Latino and Puerto Rican
groups by 5 and 2 points, respectively, and the average math score for the
Hispanic/Latino group fell 2 points -- the only group for which math scores
fell.
Stewart commented on the scores: "We can point to increased math
and science study as a reason for the current high in average math score,
but the rock-steady verbal scores are more difficult to explain. One factor
may be the decline in familiarity with English."
Another gap exists between urban and suburban scores. Average SAT
scores in the suburbs are above the national average and rising, while
scores in urban and rural areas are falling further below the average,
according to the College Board. For example, SAT verbal scores are 13 and 9
points below the national average for students from urban and rural areas,
respectively, while those for suburban students are 176 points above.
Similar score differences exist for SAT math.
"This growing disparity is particularly troublesome," said Stewart,
"because 40 to 50 percent of African American and Latino students who take
the SAT live in large cities. In a related trend, we see that the SAT
scores of students from less educated families are falling further below the
national average, while the scores of students from well educated families
are rising further above the average."
The College Board also found that like the SAT population, the
Advanced Placement population is primarily female and growing in racial and
ethnic diversity. "Some people may think AP is only available to students
of privilege," said Wade Curry, director of the Advanced Placement Program,
at the College Board. "Not true. AP teachers are raising the hopes and
potential of an increasingly diverse population in 55 percent of all high
schools. Eighty percent of those schools are public, 12 percent are
religiously affiliated and 8 percent are independent."
For more information, contact the College Board; 45 Columbus Avenue;
New York, N.Y. 10023-6992; 212/713-8000; www.collegeboard.org
*2 CLOSING THE SAT'S RACIAL DIVIDE: WHAT DOES IT TAKE
In a yet-to-be-released study by the Mellon Foundation, researchers
discovered that while there is no "magic formula" to close the test-score
gap between blacks and whites, blacks who scored high shared similar
experiences. (Cose, NEWSWEEK, 9/14). The biggest difference between high-
and low-scoring students, regardless of race, is the courses and
extracurricular activities they took.
Stephanie Bell-Rose, program officer and counsel at Mellon, in
collaboration with the Urban Institute, examined College Board data from
about 100,000 blacks who took the SAT in 1996, writes NEWSWEEK. The
researchers identified the fewer than 5% who scored 1200 or above in an
attempt to "isolate the factors responsible for their success."
Their findings:
high-scoring blacks tend to come from wealthier families than their
lower-scoring black counterparts, but they are disadvantaged relative to
high-scoring whites;
black students from private and Catholic schools fare better than
those from public schools; yet three-fourths of those who scored high were
from public schools; and
"much of the advantage of a Catholic education washed out when
compared with those of public-school students with similar extracurricular
activities and courses," writes the magazine.
An overwhelming majority of students who scored high took calculus
and honors English, and they pursued more intellectual extracurricular
activities such as journalism, public speaking and debate. Many hailed from
families who stressed education and who themselves possessed an "inner faith
as unyielding as steel," writes the magazine.
One significant hurdle for black students is the presence of
"negative preconceptions," exemplified by one Wellesley College-bound
student whose hometown residents were surprised she did not simply attend a
junior college. While the Mellon-Urban Institute study does not address
such stereotypes, Claude Steele, a Stanford psychologist, holds that these
stereotypes "impose substantial pressures on blacks that thwart academic
performance."
To counter these pressures, the National Urban League has declared
September to be "Achievement Month," and is launching several projects to
promote academic excellence, reports the magazine.
From NEWSWEEK: The Mellon study points out that "even for most
academically motivated blacks, the education environment is significantly
inferior to that enjoyed by most whites. That such numbers still manage to
do well says volumes about what could happen if America really got serious
about educational equity."
===== GOAL FIVE: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE =====
*3 EVERYDAY MATH: IT RULES IN PITTSBURGH
In a growing number of elementary classrooms across the country, the
Everyday Math curriculum from the University of Chicago School Math Project
is moving to the head of the class. According to the Pittsburgh
POST-GAZETTE, Everyday Math is offered to about 10% of elementary school
students nationwide, which makes it the most "widely used of the new
approaches." (Blotzer, 8/23).
The program emphasizes problem solving and math experiences over the
more traditional rote-learning, causing it to have some detractors. Max
Bell, one of the creators of Everyday Math, noted that "responding to
anti-reform backlash" is a major issue he and his colleagues confront daily.
The University of Chicago researchers initially interviewed young
students to see what they knew. "We saw they were all willing to give math
concepts a try, a lot with some success," said Bell. "Kids entering
kindergarten can count well beyond 10, and they recognized numerals. Ask
for half, and they give you half. Ask them to divide these up between the
three of us, and they got it done. They had the essential ideas of
operations. Kids were way ahead of what was being asked of them."
According to the paper, Everyday Math introduces multiplication and
division, fractions and geometry much earlier in a child's school life than
the traditional approach. Proponents of the program claim this lays the
"groundwork for mastering the operations and processes down the line,"
writes the paper.
The K-12 math program has been used for almost 10 years in the
Greensburg Salem school district in Pa. Statistics show that the district's
math scores on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment were on the high
end for comparable schools. Student scores also were above grade level,
particularly in problem-solving and concepts, on the Iowa Tests of Basic
Skills, writes the paper. Student SAT scores were above state and national
averages.
The POST-GAZETTE also reports that Everyday Math students "do as
well or better than their peers in traditional classrooms in computation and
far better in problem solving."
Some districts, including Pittsburgh, decided to phase in the
Everyday Math program. However, Riverview implemented the program in all
grade levels at the same time, which was a "shock" to the school system.
While some students handled it well, others struggled to adjust to the new
program.
The paper underscores the importance of teacher training,
highlighting the work of Anne McFeaters and Marilee Glick, two teachers
assigned to teach their colleagues the ins and outs of Everyday Math. The
program can be a challenge for teachers who "have little affinity or special
training for the subject to begin with," writes the paper. A $3.1M grant
from the National Science Foundation makes it possible for Pittsburgh to
afford teacher demonstration projects.
Diane Briars, Pittsburgh schools' math coordinator, said the teacher
training program has been an "absolutely critical" component of Everyday
Math's success.
===== GOAL SEVEN: SAFE, DISCIPLINED AND DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS =====
*4 CRIME PREVENTION: NORTH CAROLINA'S ON GUARD
Schools in N.C. have reported a continuous decrease in the number of
firearms possessed on school campuses over the past four years, according to
the Center for the Prevention of School Violence, a N.C. violence-prevention
and research organization. In the 1993-1994 school year, there were 448
reported firearms, dropping to 305 in 1994-1995; 206 in 1995-1996; and 163
in 1996-1997.
"There is no one solution" for reducing the number of students
carrying weapons to school, said Joanne McDaniel, research director for the
Center, which is housed at North Carolina State University and serves as a
"strong voice" to promote safe schools for all students, according to Center
material.
According to McDaniel, a combination of the state being proactive in
this area, strong leadership at the local level and an active Center paved
the way for weapons reduction in the schools. The Center emerged in 1993
out of an Executive Order of the Governor of North Carolina to serve as a
primary point of contact for information, programs and research about
preventing school violence.
Initially, the Center was part of the Department of Crime Control
and Public Safety in affiliation with the Governor's Crime Commission. In
1995, it joined forces with the College of Education and Psychology at North
Carolina State University. The partnership between law enforcement and
education places the Center in a unique position to study and advocate for
comprehensive solutions to school violence.
Information, programs and research are the three organizational
areas assigned to the Center. It serves as a clearinghouse for information
about the problem of school violence as well as solutions to it. Center
staff maintain a library and respond to requests for information, operate a
toll-free information line (800/299-6054) and manage a Web site
(www.ncsu.edu/cpsv/).
The Center also is working on sundry projects designed to make
schools more orderly, safe and secure. The projects include character
education, safe school planning, at-risk youth/alternative education
programs, and the training of teachers, principals, law enforcement officers
and court officials.
For example, a major program undertaken by the Center involves
School Resource Officers. The Center defines an SRO as:
"A certified law enforcement officer who is permanently assigned to
provide coverage to a school or a set of schools. The SRO is specifically
trained to perform three roles: law enforcement officer, law-related
counselor; and law-related education teacher."
In 1996, the North Carolina General Assembly passed an initiative
that suggested consideration of placing SROs into each high school in the
state. Funding associated with this effort contributed to the placement of
338 of the state's 450 SRO positions.
Research conducted by the Center has detected a correlation between
the reduction in the number of firearms reported on school property and
increasing numbers of SROs assigned to schools, combined with zero tolerance
approaches, tougher laws, and the Center's statewide efforts. Further
research is underway to ascertain the extent of the SROs effect on reducing
firearms in schools.
McDaniel also highlighted the valiant efforts of local school
leaders who put in place zero-tolerance policies that are strictly adhered
to at the school level. The combination of strict laws with the
understanding that administrators will carry out the law inhibits those
students prone to bringing firearms to school, she added.
Besides an increase in the number of SROs, the Center posits that
the following also have contributed to the reduction in the reported number
of firearms:
legislation at both the federal and state levels that have increased
the penalties associated with bringing and possessing firearms on school
property;
intensified efforts at the school building level by school
administrators;
an attitude of zero tolerance that permeates schools; and
the efforts of the Center that have focused attention on the problem
of school violence and have contributed to program development and
implementation.
For more information contact the Center for the Prevention of School
Violence; 20 Enterprise Street; Suite 2; Raleigh, N.C. 27606-7375;
919-515-9397; 800/299-6054; www.ncsu.edu/cpsv/
==== GOAL EIGHT: PARENTAL PARTICIPATION ====
*5 NATIONAL STANDARDS: THEY WORK FOR PARENTS, TOO
In the whirlwind of national standards for student achievement, the
National PTA developed standards for parent involvement. "The overall
importance of parent and family involvement, as the foundation for all other
education reforms, warrants the same consideration and attention as other
areas for which national standards are being developed," notes PTA leaders
in their "National Standards" publication (May 1998).
The standards produced by the National PTA are "research based and
grounded in both sound philosophy and practical experience," according to
the PTA. They carry a three-fold purpose: to promote meaningful parent and
family participation; to raise awareness regarding the components of
effective programs; to provide guidelines for schools that wish to improve
their programs.
Six standards for parent/family involvement were developed by the
National PTA, and include:
Communication -- Communication between home and school is regular,
two-way and meaningful;
Parenting -- Parenting skills are promoted and supported;
Student Learning -- Parents play an integral role in assisting
student learning;
Volunteering -- Parents are welcome in the school, and their support
and assistance are sought;
School Decision Making and Advocacy -- Parents are full partners in
the decisions that effect children and families;
Collaborating with Community -- Community resources are used to
strengthen schools, families and student learning.
"National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs" is
peppered with practical examples that illustrate each of the goals. The
publication also outlines several steps local parent groups could take to
put the standards in place in their community:
create an action team;
examine current practice;
develop a plan of improvement;
develop a written parent/family involvement policy;
secure support;
provide professional development for
school/program staff; and
evaluate and revise the plan.
For more information, contact the National PTA; 330 N. Wabash
Avenue; Suite 2100; Chicago, Illinois 60611-3690; 312/670-6782;
www.pta.org.
THE NATIONAL EDUCATION GOALS
* GOAL 1: READY TO LEARN
All children in America will start school ready to learn.
* GOAL 2: SCHOOL COMPLETION
The high school graduation rate will increase to at least 90
percent.
* GOAL 3: STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT AND CITIZENSHIP
All students will leave grades 4, 8, and 12 having demonstrated
competency over challenging subject matter including English, mathematics,
science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history,
and geography, and every school in America will ensure that all students
learn to use their minds well, so they may be prepared for responsible
citizenship, further learning, and productive employment in our Nation's
modern economy.
* GOAL 4: TEACHER EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The Nation's teaching force will have access to programs for the
continued improvement of their professional skills and the opportunity to
acquire the knowledge and skills needed to instruct and prepare all American
students for the next century.
* GOAL 5: MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE
United States students will be first in the world in mathematics and
science achievement.
* GOAL 6: ADULT LITERACY AND LIFELONG LEARNING
Every adult American will be literate and will possess the knowledge
and skills necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise the rights
and responsibilities of citizenship.
* GOAL 7: SAFE, DISCIPLINED, & ALCOHOL- AND DRUG-FREE SCHOOLS
Every school in the United States will be free of drugs, violence,
and the unauthorized presence of firearms and alcohol and will offer a
disciplined environment conducive to learning.
* GOAL 8: PARENTAL PARTICIPATION
Every school will promote partnerships that will increase parental
involvement and participation in promoting the social, emotional, and
academic growth of children.
_______________________________________________________________
| National Education Goals Panel |
| 1255 22nd Street NW; Suite 502; Washington, D.C. 20037 |
| 202/632-0957 (Fax); e-mail: negp@goalline.org |
| Web site: www.negp.gov |
|_______________________________________________________________|
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