Posts Tagged “School Year”

Oct 03 2008

Three Houston Schools in Trouble. Public Upset Over Possible Closings

Posted by admin in Middle School Article, tags: , , , ,

Three Houston schools have been persistently rated as unsatisfactory by state guidelines for three or more years. As with most school closing warnings across the nation, the parents, community, and elected officials with a political stake in the area are up in arms over the possibility.

Though parents want their children to attend schools within their own neighborhood, I believe the community must look at the cost of keeping these three schools open — the students are failing, unable to meet the bare minimum requirements of the state! With their futures at risk, I would think that parents would want their children at better performing schools.

The Houston schools’ ratings are based on statewide student achievement tests and the overall dropout and graduation rates of each school. If a proposed policy by the Texas Education Agency is adopted, then the state education commissioner will be able to close in the near future any school that is rated unsatisfactory for four consecutive years. Thus, Houston schools Superintendent Dr. Abelardo Saavedra is only preparing the public, in case the schools do not gain a satisfactory rating at the end of the 2006-2007 school year.

In 2005, Saavedra warned that Kashmere High School, Sam Houston High School, and McReynolds Middle School needed to improve their ratings or drastic measures would be taken. Privatization of the schools was mentioned then; however, the Houston schools currently are preparing for closing the schools, if they again are rated unsatisfactory.

During the last school year, the Houston schools changed administrators at several chronically unsatisfactory schools and a large percentage of the teaching staff at each school. Though tremendous improvement was seen at Kashmere, Sam Houston, and McReynolds, there was not enough progress made and they were again rated as unsatisfactory.

For the 2006-2007 school Continue Reading

Comments No Comments »

Jun 22 2008

Miami Schools Get Top Marks this Year

Posted by admin in Middle School Article, tags: , , , ,

Most of Miami Schools Earn an “A” from the State of Florida

Fifty-three percent of Miami-Dade’s schools – 179 out of 328 receiving grades Wednesday – received an “A” based on their students’ performance on the 2006 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test this spring. This is an improvement from last year when the percentage was around forty-six percent. Overall, Miami Schools have scored very well in comparison to the whole state. This year, in total seventy-three percent of Miami Schools scored an “A” or a “B” in 2006 and only six percent received a “D” or “F” in this year’s testing. The State of Florida began the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test three years. Eighty-seven schools had higher grades in 2006 than in 2005, including 59 percent of middle schools (39 middle schools). The number of schools with higher grades in 2006 more than doubled the number with lower grades.

How the Schools have Improved

There are several ways that Miami Schools have improved in the 2006 school year. Twenty-two of the thirty-nine middle schools to receive improving grades have extended the school days and gone to a longer school year. Miami Schools have started to increase and broaden its Gifted Students programs as well. This year the District will make improvements to how gifted students are identified and educated. This is a progressive plan that will be implemented over the next three years. The goal is to have by 2009 a completely new education program that will be of a superior quality and allows greater access to those underrepresented students. The plan is to have the program to be at schools across Miami Schools. The District will begin to intensive students screening to better identify gifted students. This screening will begin earlier, in the first grade, and use a better screening tool Continue Reading

Comments No Comments »