The number of DeKalb schools that met federal testing standards in 2007-08 dropped 25 percent and now almost half of the county schools are not meeting Adequate Yearly Progress, according to the most recent Georgia Department of Education report.
About 46.5 percent of DeKalb schools did not meet AYP under requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act [NCLB]. That means about 75 schools in DeKalb made the cut, while 65 did not.
Of DeKalb’s 20 high schools, 12, or 60 percent, did not meet AYP. Last year, 19 percent did not meet the standards.
Statewide, 31 percent of schools did not meet the standards, down from 18 percent last year.
Georgia Department of Education spokesman Dana Tofig said they expected more schools would miss AYP for a couple of reasons.
“First, we set the bar higher for schools by making the math curriculum more rigorous,” said Tofig. “And now more kids – in grades 3, 4, 5, 8 and 11–are required to pass state English and math exams. We knew when we raised the bar, we’d see a one-year drop.”
Under NCLB, schools are expected to meet state and federal goals that show continuous improvement. If schools miss AYP for two consecutive years, they are put on the Needs Improvement list and are required to provide free tutoring. By 2014, 100 percent of students are expected to pass state curriculum tests in math and reading/English.
Students statewide–especially in middle school– made news this spring when Criterion Reference Competency Tests or CRCT results showed many are not grasping the new math curriculum. Those poor results are tied to fewer schools making AYP.
And while there was some good news for DeKalb–nine schools on the Needs Improvement list made AYP this year – poor math scores continue to plague the system.
“I don’t think DeKalb has done all it can to beef up math,” said school board member Tom Bowen, who recognized the increased rigor in math. “But DeKalb’s issues go beyond the difficulty of the material. Part of what we see is new rigor, part is communication of those new standards, but part of it is DeKalb not executing.”
Bowen said he thought the administration over emphasized the changing curriculum as the reason DeKalb struggled meeting state and federal standards.
“We have a long, consistent history with poor math scores,” said Bowen. “Clearly, we were not performing well before the changes were made to the math curriculum. It’s the same schools struggling year in and year out. At minimum, Dr. Lewis should have created an action plan for these schools.”
Summer retest results for CRCT, which will be released in September, might improve AYP standings for some schools.
Superintendent Crawford Lewis acknowledged math tests tripped up many DeKalb students. “We know that this year, math was a challenge for us,” Lewis said.
But Tofig – who urged parents not to rush to judgment if their child’s school did not meet AYP and look at the data – pointed out that of the 65 DeKalb school not meeting standards, 45 of them made AYP last year. Of those, 35 were elementary schools with only one on the Needs Improvement list.
“Setting the bar higher hit elementary schools hard,” said Tofig. “Next year we expect to see a lot of these school pass.”
Traditionally strong schools such as Dunwoody High School–considered by some to be one of the best high schools in the metro area if not the state–also did not make AYP.
“They met 10 of the 11 academic benchmarks and missed just one,” said Tofig. “I think anyone would feel comfortable sending their kids to Dunwoody.”
For more on AYP results, log on to http://public.doe.k12.ga.us/ayp2008.
