Schools
don't make numbers
No Child Left Behind requirements
not met in P'burg, Warren Hills districts.
Friday, August 12, 2005 • By SARA LEITCH •
The Express-Times
PHILLIPSBURG -- The high school and
middle school here are among three in the county where the
state says some students aren't scoring high enough on
standardized tests.
But Superintendent Gordon Pethick said
that doesn't reflect how, on the whole, eighth- and
11th-graders are passing the tests in greater numbers than
they were a few years ago.
"Every year we've seen a significant
gain," Pethick said. "We're hoping to see those scores
continue to increase next year."
In Phillipsburg's middle school, 62
percent of the student body passed this year's state Grade
Eight Performance Assessment in language arts, just a 1
percent increase since 2002. But the science and math tests
had 75 and 52 percent passing rates, respectively. Those
numbers were both about 15 percent higher than in
2002.
At the high school, 85 percent of the
student body passed this year's state High School
Proficiency Assessment in language arts, and 75 percent
passed it in math. The percentage passing the language arts
test rose 9 percent in the last three years, while in math
15 percent more students passed the test this year than in
2003.
"That's pretty good," said George Chando,
director of secondary education in the district. "New
Jersey's test, compared to what is given in other states,
always comes up as a much more difficult test."
But federal standards set by the No Child
Left Behind Act say schools aren't considered to be making
adequate yearly progress unless enough students in every
category pass the test. In Phillipsburg's middle and high
schools, not enough disabled students passed the test to
meet the target for adequate yearly progress. Students who
get free or reduced lunches didn't past the test in great
enough numbers, either.
"There are some groups that are
experiencing more difficulty than others," Pethick
said.
This is the third year in a row
Phillipsburg High School hasn't met the progress targets.
The middle school hasn't met them in five years. If the
school received federal Title I money, that would mean
officials would have to start planning ways to change the
way the school is run to try to boost test
scores.
Title I funding is money allocated by the
federal government to counties and school districts to
improve achievement among poor and disadvantaged
students.
Since the school doesn't get Title
I money, that won't be happening. But Chando says he's been
working for the past few years to overhaul educational
programs at the middle and high school to help more students
pass the tests.
Elsewhere in Warren County, Warren Hills
Middle School also didn't meet targets for the third year in
a row. The state put Warren Hills and Hackettstown high
schools and the county vocational technical school on a
warning list, letting officials know they'll be put on the
failing list if they don't get scores up next
year.
Belvidere and North Warren high schools
both met standards for adequate progress.
Though the No Child Left Behind Act led
to a lot more testing and paperwork for school
administrators, Pethick said he's in favor of it.
"It's held districts' feet to the fire,"
he said. "Before standardized tests, the measure of a
school's success was the grades schools gave themselves. No
Child Left Behind kicked it into gear."
In Phillipsburg, officials are hoping to
boost test scores by working with Cornell, La Salle and
Rutgers universities to create new note-taking protocols and
new curriculums in math and science. Middle schoolers are
spending 90 minutes a day on math, up from 45 a few years
ago.
"Over three years, we can definitely say
we're making progress at the middle school," Chando
said.
The changes will continue this fall, with
a new writing curriculum for grades 6 through 12 that aims
to integrate writing into classes across the board. Even in
math classes, students will have to answer open-ended
writing questions on tests. And freshmen will get a special
advisory program that helps them get organized for high
school.
In addition, Chando said, students who
aren't passing the tests will get assigned to afterschool or
summer classes to help bring them up to snuff. And the
school board is considering a rule that would bar students
from participating in extracurricular activities if they
skip those extra classes.
A two-week pilot program this summer,
where students faced no sanctions for not coming to class,
didn't have the attendance Chando said he'd wanted to
see.
"Not everyone came that should have been
there," he said. "We're doing everything we possibly can to
make you a successful student. But there's a buy-in that has
to take place, too."
Reporter Sara Leitch can be reached at 908-475-8044 or by
e-mail at sleitch@express-times.com.
© 2005 The Express-Times. Used with
permission.
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