Category: In the News

ADVISORY: Rhee, Parker, BEST NC to hold media availability Tuesday

DVISORY: Rhee, Parker, BEST NC to hold media availability Tuesday. Cary, NC – BEST NC will host a media availability Tuesday featuring unlikely education reform allies Michelle Rhee and George Parker, who will discuss their work to improve education in Washington, DC.

State has a big math problem

If North Carolina were to secede from the union and become an independent country — no, conspiracy theorists, I’m not actually proposing this as a reasonable response to recent political events —  how would our education system rank among the other developed nations of the world? There’s no need for a speculative answer to this hypothetical question. Last year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) administered its latest round of math, reading, and science tests to more than half a million 15-year-olds across dozens of   countries. Known as the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA),  these exams give policymakers one way of assessing their schools’ relative performance as well as some useful insights about what policies or factors tend to be associated with high student achievement. For the 2015 tests, both North Carolina and Massachusetts had enough of their students tested to allow for independent comparisons of their performance to that  of other nations, rather than just as part of the nationwide   sample. The United States is best described as a middling performer in reading and science. In both cases, its mean scores are within a few points of the OECD average, and about as many countries ranked above it as below it. In math, unfortunately, American students are much worse off, ranking significantly below those of most other OECD  countries. North Carolina, it turns out, is fairly representative of America’seducational standing. We also rank about in the middle in reading and science, with North Carolinians faring a little worse in reading and a little better in science than other American kids. Our weakest point, again, is math. Only four OECD countries — Chile, Mexico, Greece, and Turkey — rank below North Carolina in that subject. (The other state participant, Massachusetts, is a high achiever in all three  subjects.) Julie Kowal, vice president of policy and research at the education nonprofit BEST NC, describes these gaps in the following terms: “In the highest-performing OECD countries, 90 percent of students meet basic proficiency levels – meaning they demonstrate knowledge and skills that enable them to participate actively in relevant life situations. In North Carolina and the U.S. as a whole, roughly 80 percent of students attain basic proficiency in reading and science on PISA; 70 percent of students attain basic proficiency in  math.” Raising by 10 to 20 points the share of our students possessing basic skills is a challenge, but hardly an impossible one. How can North Carolina do  it? While I’m not against spending money on our highest priorities, don’t assume that variations in test scores simply reflect variations in expenditure. Indeed, many high-performing countries spend less per   pupil than North Carolina does. And the 2015 PISA report observed that for most OECD countries, “factors other than the level of investment in education are better predictors of student performance” and that the relationship between student performance and teachers’ salaries relative  to per-capita national income “is not statistically  significant.” Teacher quality is, of course, paramount. But it’s about more than pay. PISA findings suggest that effective programs to keep teachers learning throughout their careers show strong relationships to student success, as do strategies for encouraging teacher collaboration. Conservatives will be pleased to learn that the extent of competition among schools is associated with higher scores, although not in all the participating countries. Progressives will be pleased to learn that prior enrollment in preschool is also associated with higher  scores. The PISA data are consistent with more carefully designed studies that show how important it is to build proper incentive structures for school governance and accountability. For example, school principals should be given more authority over their employees, budgets, and school policies, but only if they are properly trained to exercise  it. Although North Carolinians may disagree about education policies and priorities, there is little debate about the benefits of school reform. We know that the competitiveness of our economy, the strength of our families and communities, and the health of our republic depend on getting it right. John Hood is chairman of the John Locke Foundation and appears on the talk show “NC SPIN.” You can follow him @JohnHoodNC. Click here to view State has big math problem PDF

North Carolina Teens Behind International Peers In Math

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_hidrop] Teens in North Carolina lag behind many of their international peers in math. That’s according to the most recent results of the Program of International School Assessment, which measures math, reading and literacy among 15- year-olds. Students in more than 70 cities and countries around the world took the test last year, the frstthat North Carolina participated. Those scores were posted last month and put the state behind 36 locations in math. In a statement, Brenda Berg, president of business advocacy group BEST NC, called the state’s math results “alarming.” Scores here were roughly comparable with those in Lithuania, Hungary and Croatia, and behind those in Korea, Ireland and Vietnam. “But this PISA analysis is helpful and tells us that equitable access to high-quality educators is important,” Berg said. “To improve our standing in the country and the world, North Carolina must prioritize teacher and principal talent, especially for hard-to- staff subjects like math; and also for high-needs schools and students.” North Carolina’s science and reading scores were on par with those in the United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden and exceeded results in 40 other regions. Singapore was the top performer in all three subjects tested. North Carolina State Superintendent June Atkinson said in a statement that she is heartened that local students scored roughly in line with national averages on the math, science and reading portions of the test. Massachusetts and Puerto Rico were the only other American regions that participated. “This information will help us as we review content standards and set expectations for the future,” Atkinson said. Click here to view North Carolina Teens Behind International Peers PDF [/vc_hidrop][/vc_column][/vc_row]

WCPSS Seeking to Add More ‘Charter-Like’ Schools

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/1″][vc_hidrop] WCPSS Seeking to Add More ‘Charter-Like’ Schools The “restart” model for high-needs schools will expand to 10 more WCPSS schools next year. Last week, the state Board of Education approved the application submitted by WCPSS to restart five more elementary schools and five middle schools. All of which are schools that need to improve their test scores. The school system “relaunched” Walnut Creek and Barwell Road elementary schools last year under the state’s restart program, bringing “charter-like” flexibility in school start and end times, calendar, budgeting and hiring. WCPSS retains full control of the schools, however, and all teachers must still be actively certified to teach. The restart model was so well received at those two schools, the WCPSS staff decided to add 10 more schools for next school year. This is different than the Renaissance School Program implemented under former Superintendent Tony Tata. That model focused on human resource incentives such as offering signing and performance bonuses, hiring additional teachers, and adding more professional development all funded partly by federal Race Top The Top grant money. WCPSS ended that program two years ago when the grant money ran out. The restart model gives principals, teachers, and parents the room todevelop creative, data-driven solutions to the issues raised by the data at each school. The school system also gains flexibility for converting funds to pay for additional staff, and the schools offer and extended school day one day a week, parent academies, and additional family services that aren’t typically offered inschools. To qualify, a school must be designated as “recurring, low performing” by the state based on its test scores in two of the last three years on a rolling basis. Walnut Creek and Barwell are part of the 12-school Elementary Support Model group overseen by Area Superintendent James Overman. All 12 schools would qualify for restart status, but not all ESM schools are part of Wake’s application this time. The school system submitted requests for a combination of elementary and middle schools, many of them magnet schools.  Bugg Elementary School Carroll Magnet Middle School East Garner Elementary School East Garner Magnet Middle School East Millbrook Middle School East Wake Middle School Fox Road Magnet Elementary School Millbrook Elementary School Poe GT/AIG Basics Magnet Elementary School Wendell Middle School Now that the State Board of Education approved the application for all 10 schools, each school will develop plans which may include extending the school day, extending the school year, changing the school calendar, adding family support services. Many changes will need to be approved by the WCPSS School Board. Click here to view State School Funding Overhaul, Principal_AP Pay Plan PDF [/vc_hidrop][/vc_column][/vc_row]