Grade 4 test results were used in warnings under the federal No Child Left Behind act

Thursday, November 20, 2003 • BY BEV McCARRON • Star-Ledger Staff

New Jersey released the names of more than 400 elementary schools yesterday that failed to meet student performance levels set under new federal law, the last and longest list of such schools this year.

Previously the state released the names of high schools and middle schools that received "early warning" letters or landed on a "needs improvement" list, a more serious category under the controversial No Child Left Behind act.

LIST OF SCHOOLS PAGE 25

This round, nearly one-third of the state's 1,325 grade schools were listed as failing on at least one of 40 indicators keyed to the 2003 fourth-grade achievement test, the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge 4.

The lists broke down like this:

• 275 schools, or 20 percent of the state's elementary schools, were sent "early warning" letters for missing the mark in at least one of 40 criteria measuring whether a school is making "adequate yearly progress." Among these were some of the state's high-achieving schools.

• Another 153 largely urban schools were cited as "needs improvement," meaning that, for two consecutive years, they failed at least one federal indicator, drawing penalties that include individual student tutoring and allowing students to transfer out. Most of those schools -- 145 -- were already on the list last year. Eight new ones were added yesterday.

• Fourteen schools were listed in the "safe harbor" category as underperforming schools that had shown improvement last year.

The voice of NCLB critics have steadily risen since the law was signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2002. While many educators note the law's noble goals -- 100 percent proficiency for all students by 2014 -- there has been much lobbying to create a better way to measure progress. For instance, New Jersey educators pointed to the irony that the "early warning" list came just days after the state was lauded for ranking in the top 10 in the country in three of four exams that were given nationally to fourth- and eighth-graders.

That points up some of the flaws with NCLB, said Education Commissioner William L. Librera said at yesterday's news conference. He and other state education officials, as well as Gov. James E. McGreevey, are lobbying Washington to change parts of the law.

"New Jersey students performed at some of the highest levels in the country," Librera said. "And we think that the last message that anyone should get is that these are failing schools."

The release of the new data unleashed another chorus of angry words from school officials weary of the steady flow of numbers released piecemeal by the state over the past two months. Federal law requires the data be made public.

"It's the hottest topic in public education," said Passaic Superintendent Robert Holster, where six schools appeared on the list. "Once we start reaching progress by state indicators, there's another layer, a federal layer."

School officials said the law unfairly labels schools that are making gains, pointing out that a school can land on a list because too few students take the proficiency test.

"Basically, I would warn the public to be cautious of this list because it is not accurate in measuring the quality of these schools," said Teresa Rafferty, spokeswoman for Piscataway schools. The district is disputing the addition of the Arbor elementary school on the early warning list.

"Our schools are not failing," Rafferty said. "Piscataway High School was recently on the list, and yet we were just awarded the governor's School of Excellence for dramatic improvement within two academic years."

Most of the lowest-performing schools are in urban areas that chronically fail to meet targeted achievement standards. But, like the high school data released in September, several districts whose schools received early warnings, such as Somerset Hills and the Chathams, are those that generally garner nothing but praise.

If those schools don't improve in targeted areas by next year, they'll move into to the "needs improvement" list.

"We've never been in such wonderful company," said Dina Scacchetti, supervisor in charge of assessment in Union City, an urban district, which had three schools on the "early warning list" and one on "needs improvement."

Under the law, all schools must show steady improvements in performance among different subgroups of students, including African-American, Hispanic, economically disadvantaged, students with disabilities and those who speak a limited amount of English.

At the high school and middle school level, many districts made the list when the scores of their special education students and those who speak limited English fell short.

At the elementary level, the spotlight was more on low-income students and African-American students who underperformed, according to Librera.

Although he criticized how the law worked, Librera said called it "important legislation" that forces districts to examine groups of students who had been long overlooked.

On the brighter side, Librera noted that the elementary schools fared better than the high schools, 75 percent of which received early warning notices, and the middle schools, with nearly 50 percent failing to meet achievement standards.

"Today's data shows us that our youngest students are making great progress," said Librera.

In Newark, with 37 schools in jeopardy, Superintendent Marion Bolden said federally funded tutoring and other help is being provided to some 1,100 students in schools facing penalties for underperforming. A smaller number of students have opted to transfer to other schools in the district.

Bolden said city schools have improved, and she expects to see fewer on the list next year. But, like the other school officials, she took issue with the federal government attaching labels to schools that don't meet its criteria.

" No one wants to suggest that No Child Left Behind doesn't have a lot of good features in it. But, that's all we do now is seemingly label, and that's not the best way," she said.