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Trying to assign letter grades to public schools to create more accountability will be another huge waste of time, money and energy and accomplish little if anything positive. It will, however, divert attention from people asking what is being done to fix the schools we already know are failing.
It is unclear what is going to happen when a school receives an A in reading comprehension, a B in writing, a C in math and a D in science.
Will language arts teachers be rewarded and math and science teachers placed on academic probation?
What if the attendance rate is 93 percent, but the reading, writing and math test scores all show adequate yearly progress?
What if the dropout rate is 40 percent, but the academic test scores are high for those staying in school?
Will there be grades for attendance, discipline referrals, the number of kids going on to higher education and the dropout rate or just grades based on standardized test scores in reading, writing and arithmetic?
Public schools tend to be a reflection of the students they serve. If the majority of parents in a school attendance zone earned mostly A’s and B’s when they were in school, the majority of students will earn A’s and B’s. If the majority of parents dropped out of school, the odds are very high the dropout rate at the school will be high. Attendance rates and discipline issues will also mirror how well parents attended and behaved in school. School grades will also be community grades.
Grades given to the lower 80 percent of the students in a school are inaccurate and filled with personal beliefs and opinions of the teachers giving the grades. The same problem will exist when the government tries to grade public schools. Personal opinions and biases will affect the grades schools will receive, just as they do in the classroom. Trying to assign “fair” and “accurate” letter grades to schools with a diverse population will be impossible. Also, is the Department of Education willing to be graded on the leadership it is providing?
If there is one thing public school officials do really well, it is convincing others that any problems at a school are not their fault. Administrators will blame tenure; teachers will blame irresponsible parents; parents will blame the teachers; and students will blame their lack of success on a curriculum that does not meet their needs. These are all valid reasons to justify failing schools, but what is going to be done to correct these problems?
If letter grades are given to public schools, the report card should include grades for administrative leadership, parental involvement, attendance and student behavior as well as ISTEP+ test score results. Teacher effectiveness would need to receive a variety of grades since a typical staff will contain several A and B teachers along with some C and D, and a couple of F teachers.
No one questions the need for better accountability. Time spent to improve accountability of public schools needs to be directed toward figuring out how to improve what we already know is wrong. If reading, writing and arithmetic scores are unacceptable (D), what needs to be done to make them acceptable (C) or exemplary (A)?
Trying to create more understandable or meaningful terms that will hold schools more accountable will not result in higher student achievement. Grading schools will create unnecessary tension and mistrust within the education community and the people it serves.
We do not need this kind of disruption when building trusting relationships between the community and schools is critical to the success of any school. Focus on fixing, not labeling.
