THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 23, 1995 TAG: 9503230590
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A11 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: RATING VIRGINIA SCHOOLS
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
The academic performance of Virginia's public school students has grown stagnant, making it clear that the state needs improved standards of learning, state schools Superintendent William C. Bosher Jr. said Wednesday.
``We need to give kids better academic targets to shoot for,'' Bosher said at a news conference after releasing results of the 1993-94 ``report card'' of the state's schools.
Bosher said schools have made significant improvements since the report was first issued five years ago, especially in preparing students for college. More high school kids, for instance, are earning advanced studies diplomas, while more middle school students are enrolling in foreign language and higher-level math courses.
But student achievement has stalled - and in some cases declined - the past five years on standardized tests that quiz students on core academic subjects such as language arts, social studies, science and math. Bosher blamed the lackluster performance on the state's failure to create strong standards that hold schools accountable.
Bosher said the state is moving to ``fill that void'' by updating academic ``standards of learning'' that spell out what students in each grade should learn and create consequences for schools that don't measure up.
Schools that fail to improve might face loss of state accreditation, Bosher said. There would be incentives for schools making progress, Bosher said, such as less state regulation or more money for local innovation.
``The key won't be to delineate a line where a school either passes or fails,'' Bosher said. ``The emphasis is on improvement.''
The Allen administration has led the push for standards that are tough, measurable and written in plain language. The state Board of Education, which has final say on what they will look like, begins a series of statewide hearings on the proposed standards beginning 7 p.m. Monday at Norfolk's Maury High School.
A new statewide test will be used to measure how well schools are teaching the new standards. While it would replace, as early as 1997, the national standardized Iowa Test of Basic Skills now used, steps will be taken so that it can be used to compare Virginia students with their peers nationwide, Bosher said.
Other challenges facing Virginia's schools, state officials said, are to better prepare students for the work force of the 21st century and improve the performance of minority students.
Last year, the report shows, three of 10 students who said they did not plan to attend college did not enroll in a vocational program that would presumably prepare them for a job.
``That is not good,'' said James P. Jones, president of the state Board of Education. ``We need to do a better job.''
Jones said schools must do a better job of interesting kids in careers at an earlier age about career opportunities.
More minority students are taking advanced classes than five years ago, but Bosher said he wasn't satisfied with the rate of improvement. The minority dropout rate also has increased slightly.
Bosher said he was encouraged by the growth in attendance, which has increased by 6 percentage points in middle schools and 5 points in high schools. Another good sign, he said, is a decline in the percentage of over-age fourth- and eighth-graders.
Bosher warned against quick fixes.
``If you want improvement to be long term, it has to be incremental and pervasive,'' Bosher said.
KEYWORDS: REPORT CARD EDUCATION DROPOUT RATE TEST SCORES OUTCOME
ACCOUNTABILITY PROJECT SCHOOLS STANDARDIZED TESTING LITERACY
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