Thursday, July 29, 2010

CHEERING ON MEDIOCRITY

"Teaching and learning is evident when we look at the scores," said Calla Wright, president of the Coalition of Concerned Citizens for African American Children, which backs the diversity policy. "How can these people dispute that fact? The state is confirming that."


http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/07/15/581976/test-gains-renew-diversity-flap.html#ixzz0v6Y3UwEv

2010 AYP results for urban counties
Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 08:38 AM

AYP Status – A federal measure that determines how subgroups (e.g., race/ethnicity, sex, disability, and socioeconomic status) performed on state tests. For a school to make Adequately Yearly Progress (AYP), all subgroups in the school must score proficient on state tests.

Guilford: 69 schools out of 116 (59.5%)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg: 97 schools out of 168 (57.7%)
Winston-Salem/Forsyth: 44 schools out of 81 (54.3%)
Wake: 61 schools out of 159 (38.4%)
Durham: 13 schools out of 52 (25.0%)

Related Link

New ABCs results rebut claims of academic benefits from forced busing

By CJ Staff
July 29, 2010

RALEIGH — Wake County public schools lagged behind other urban districts this year, when it came to meeting goals set in North Carolina's ABCs of Public Education accountability program. That's the assessment of the John Locke Foundation's top education expert.

"The preliminary data clearly show that test score gains in Wake County are consistently smaller than those in North Carolina's other large school districts," said Terry Stoops, JLF Director of Education Studies. "These numbers rebut the claims that Wake County's unique system of forcibly busing students for socioeconomic diversity generated some kind of special benefit for student performance. If you think test score growth is linked at all to student assignment policy, the latest numbers suggest Wake should look at other large school districts for examples. None of those districts uses forced busing for student assignment."

The state ABC report set for release Aug. 5 shows that 61 of Wake's 159 schools met state standards of adequate yearly progress for student performance. That's 38 percent of Wake schools. Nearly 60 percent of Guilford schools (69 of 116) met the state's standards. In Mecklenburg, the number was 58 percent (97 of 168), while 54 percent (44 of 81) of Winston-Salem/Forsyth public schools met state goals. Among the largest school systems, only Durham trailed Wake's percentage, with 25 percent (13 of 52) of its schools meeting state targets.

Of these districts, Wake County has a significantly lower percentage of low-income students as measured by the federal school lunch program, Stoops said.

"While three other large urban districts saw at least half of their schools meet state ABC performance goals, barely more than one-third of Wake's schools met that benchmark," he said. "No one should look at those numbers and determine that anything special is happening in Wake County that sets it ahead of other urban districts in improving student performance."

Stoops takes away another lesson from the new ABC numbers. "During the tight state budget conditions we've seen in recent years, public education cheerleaders have complained constantly that cuts in funding would hurt the North Carolina public school classroom," he said. "These new numbers don't fit that template. Test scores didn't go down as the state tightened its budget belt. In fact, test scores went up in many schools."

"I suspect state education officials will trumpet these scores when they release them officially next week," Stoops added. "But I wonder if they will feel inclined to mention that test scores climbed despite the fact that North Carolina legislators slowed the river of taxpayer dollars flowing toward public education.”

Wake lagged behind other urban districts this year in more than just the percentage of its schools meeting state student performance goals, Stoops said. In composite math and reading scores for grades 3 through 8, Wake's growth trailed growth in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Guilford, and Winston-Salem/Forsyth schools.

The same was true for composite high school end-of-course test results. "The end-of-course results were particularly interesting," Stoops said. "Wake's composite score grew by 4.8 points, while Charlotte-Mecklenburg's score grew by 8.3 points, Winston-Salem/Forsyth's grew by 9.2 points, and Guilford's score grew by 10.3 points. Wake also registered the smallest gain among the four large systems on six of eight individual end-of-course tests."

Those numbers do not make a great case for Wake County's efforts to improve student performance, Stoops said. "Wake County's test scores are improving, but no one could look at these numbers and say that Wake is exceeding other large North Carolina school systems in speeding improvement. People who argue that Wake's recently discarded forced busing policy produced benefits for students might want to rethink their arguments after studying these numbers."

Related Link

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

MICHAEL ALVES PRESENTATION - WAKE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION

ORWELL AT HIS FINEST

And Ron's to blame for the NAACP and Great Schools' (not students) temper tantrums at each meeting and the increased security costs.

If you think Ron & Co. have kept you from allowing your voice to be heard, get all social justiced up at the General Assembly and the upcoming court trials and see how it goes. Do the same exact things and see how far it gets you on the freedom of expression front. DON'T CHANGE A THING.

I wonder if Keith Sutton and Kevin Hill would encourage abandonment of the character education policy in the schools just as they've encouraged abandonment of any sense of decorum at Board of Education meetings.

Orwell would be proud.

Monday, July 26, 2010

SCHOOL NEWSLETTER COMING

If you would like to receive a newsletter covering all the daily news and calendars concerning Wake County schools, let us know. It's an easy way to keep track of all the local coverage of news surrounding Wake County schools.

Just send an email to wakecommunity@bellsouth.net with Subscribe School News in the subject line.

We'll add you to the list.

Friday, July 23, 2010

CHICKEN LITTLE KEVIN HILL

Last time I checked Kevin, the sky had not fallen, but don't let that keep you from "stirring the pot" or working with your buddies on more crisis creation and racheting up the security costs for meetings:


But in making changes several obstacles await, including:

♦The logistical complexity of revamping such a large operation, without the expertise of Burns and Assistant Superintendent Chuck Dulaney, who is retiring.

"If the superintendent is not there, we are going to have some real issues," Hill said.

News & Observer, 2-21-10

http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/02/21/350104/wake-schools-face-change-challenge.html#ixzz0uXDcszFQ

Thursday, July 22, 2010

RALEIGH'S FINEST ARE THANKED


Margiotta Letter -

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

CHARLOTTE SCHOOLS AND THE 54.2 COALITION

Related Link for original post by Terry Stoops.


Down the road at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Posted by Terry Stoops at 09:23 AM

Great Schools in Wake Coalition press release (May 4, 2010):

One need only look down the road at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools to understand how, with a new assignment model, creating higher poverty schools directly impacts student achievement,’ said Kathleen Brown, an associate professor and chair of the Educational Leadership Area in the UNC School of Education. ‘By eliminating socioeconomic diversity and student achievement as factors in its new student assignment policy,’ continued Brown, ‘the School Board majority is failing to acknowledge the inextricable ties between the way students are assigned and their academic achievement.'"

Charlotte Observer editorial (July 21, 2010):

The results also show CMS's improvements by all groups of students, with noteworthy gains made by black, Hispanic and low-income students. Those students now outperform their peers in Wake County schools, the state's largest school system, which has fewer minority and poor students.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

MASSIVE TAX INCREASES FOR A SYSTEM LARGE MAJORITIES NEVER USE?

Most Triangle voters are willing to pay higher taxes to beef up public transportation service in the region - even though most don't ride buses now and don't expect to ride buses and trains in the future, according to a three-county poll released Wednesday.

Of 901 Wake, Durham and Orange county registered voters surveyed by phone in early March, 58 percent said they would vote for a proposed half-cent increase in the local sales tax to pay for a network of rail transit and more buses. Thirty-nine percent said they would vote against it.

Triangle elected officials are developing long-range plans for an improved transit system. In 2011 or 2012 officials are expected to call for a local referendum on whether to levy a half-cent sales tax to help pay for transit.

The survey was conducted by Fallon Research, based in Columbus, Ohio, for the Regional Transportation Alliance, a nonprofit Triangle business group that lobbies for transportation improvements. Fallon said the poll had a margin of error of 3.26 percentage points.

Other findings in the poll:

♦Nine percent use public transportation frequently or very frequently, and 69 percent do not use it at all.


Read more:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/03/25/405588/voters-willing-to-pay-for-transit.html

Saturday, July 17, 2010

SEGREGATED CHURCH TO FIGHT "SEGREGATION"

RALEIGH -- The A.M.E. Zion Church has joined a growing chorus of religious groups opposed to dismantling the Wake County school board's diversity policy, becoming the first national denomination to do so.

The decision by the denomination's 12 bishops is one indication that the school board's rollback of a policy that buses students to achieve diversity is gaining national attention.

The bishops also agreed this week to cancel their winter meeting in Arizona to protest the state's newly passed immigration law.

A historic, mostly African-American denomination of more than 1 million members, the A.M.E. Zion Church has long advanced civil rights causes. The church is also a stalwart supporter of the NAACP, which is leading the Wake protest.

http://www.newsobserver.com/2010/07/17/585437/bishops-dont-end-diversity.html#ixzz0txE7w66D

Friday, July 16, 2010

WHEN YOU LOSE AN ELECTION....

Just bypass the voters:

PART XXXIV. LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION ON DIVERSITY IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS (Dannelly, Michaux)

SECTION 34.1. There is created the Legislative Commission on Diversity in the Public Schools.

SECTION 34.2. The Commission shall consist of 15 members as follows:
(1) Five members of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(2) Five members of the Senate appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
(3) Five public members appointed by the Governor.

SECTION 34.3. The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall designate one
Representative as cochair, and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall designate one Senator as cochair. Vacancies on the Commission shall be filled by the same appointing authority that made the initial appointment. A quorum of the Commission shall be a majority of its members.

SECTION 34.4. The Commission shall study the effects of student diversity in
public school enrollment. As part of this study, the Commission shall:
(1) Consider whether schools in which students of various racial, ethnic, and
socioeconomic characteristics are balanced improve the quality of the learning experience and the academic achievement of all students as compared to schools with more homogeneous student enrollments.
(2) Examine whether diverse public schools are successful in closing the achievement gap.
(3) Explore the level of parental involvement in schools with a diverse student
population.
(4) Examine best practices for creating and maintaining student diversity in schools and school systems in other states.
(5) Consider whether diverse public schools improve student discipline.
(6) Consider the fiscal impact and efficiency of State funding streams given the data accumulated in subdivisions (1) through (5) of this section.
(7) Study any other issue the Commission considers relevant.

SECTION 34.5. The Commission, while in the discharge of its official duties, may
exercise all powers provided for under G.S. 120-19 and G.S. 120-19.1 through G.S. 120-19.4. The Commission may meet at any time upon the joint call of the cochairs. The Commission may meet in the Legislative Building or the Legislative Office Building. With approval of the Legislative Services Commission, the Legislative Services Officer shall assign professional staff to assist the Commission in its work. The House of Representatives' and the Senate's Directors of Legislative Assistants shall assign clerical staff to the Commission, and the expenses relating to the clerical employees shall be borne by the Commission. The Commission may contract for professional, clerical, or consultant services as provided by G.S. 120-32.02. If the Commission hires a consultant, the consultant shall not be a State employee or a person currently under contract with the State to provide services.
All State departments and agencies and local governments and their subdivisions
shall furnish the Commission with any information in their possession or available to them.

SECTION 34.6. The Commission shall submit a final report of the results of its
study and its recommendations to the 2011 General Assembly. The Commission shall
terminate on March 1, 2011, or upon the filing of its final report, whichever occurs first.

OKAY, BARBER, PETTY, TYSON AND WILLIAMS

Rev. Barber,

So your rebuttal on the trespass letter is:

"The lawyers will work out our individual cases We have received no word from the courts about being banned."

Now I know the language might be confusing, but perhaps your lawyers can explain it to me:

§ 143‑318.17. Disruptions of official meetings.

A person who willfully interrupts, disturbs, or disrupts an official meeting and who, upon being directed to leave the meeting by the presiding officer, willfully refuses to leave the meeting is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor. (1979, c. 655, s. 1; 1993, c. 539, s. 1028; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c).)

Your rebuttal also noted:

"No matter how he and the other five ideologues..."

Which one of your buddies has jumped ship in recent days? I'll ready the welcome wagon.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

SUPPORT THE WAKE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION

For those of you in Wake County, you don’t need a long-winded discussion of the issues facing our Wake County Board of Education.

For those of you outside of Wake County, I suspect you have heard of the challenges facing our current Wake County Board of Education. Amidst ongoing attacks by groups such as the NAACP, local organizations such as Great Schools in Wake County and statewide groups such as the NC Justice Center, they have remained loyal, steadfast and true to the promises they made to Wake County families during last fall’s elections. Sadly these groups defend a status quo policy that has resulted in a tragic 54.2% graduation rate for our socio-economically disadvantaged students in Wake County – the students they feign concern over. These failed status quo policies have and will reconcile many to a life of de-facto economic segregation.

The post-December Wake County School Board of Education has heard the concerns of Wake County residents and responded. They have pledged to end a finally unveiled “Emperor has no clothes” forced busing policy by connecting families and communities with their schools. They are working to address the critical educational shortcomings facing Wake County’s socio-economically disadvantaged students – rather than pay lip service to them.

It is not often we see elected officials, in the face of tremendous attacks, remain true to the promises they made before an election. These individuals truly have.

A local Wake County resident and friend has crafted a petition to say thanks to the Wake County School Board of Education for their work since December. It is a petition I eagerly signed.

I hope you will do so as well.

Please take a minute to go to the link below and add your name to the list. I know the members of the Wake County Board of Education will appreciate it.

You need not live in Wake County to sign the petition.

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/in-support-of-wake-county-school-board.html

Monday, July 12, 2010

BUBLE DROPS F-BOMBS AND FLIP OFFS BUT N&O SAYS IT WAS GOOD NATURED SO ALL IS WELL

Neglecting my commentary on this guy’s musical ability (he mostly does covers it appears), I’ve always felt that his music catered to more of a family friendly audience. He was in Raleigh on Friday.

I found the N&O's commentary of note:

A couple of songs in, Bublé did a comedic monologue that was surprisingly salty, with a couple of F-bombs and flip-offs (although they were so good-natured, it was hard to imagine anybody taking offense). He made the obligatory local references, including Crabtree Valley Mall and Clay Aiken, and he also poked fun at his own non-masculine image.

Read the story here.

“…hard to imagine anyone taking offense).” Yes, it’s hard for me to imagine that Mom and Dad with child in tow would take offense at a few f-bombs and the flip offs. I’m sure when that nice child goes home and starts repeating the good-natured gestures no one would take offense at their school, church, social gathering, etc.

Why not use the f bomb word and quote in the N&O? It was in good nature. Would the local tv news outlet run that good nature spot as well?