THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, April 28, 1995 TAG: 9504280504
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JON GLASS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: STAUNTON LENGTH: Medium: 65 lines
A sharp drop in reading ability among Virginia fourth-graders on a nationwide test measuring educational progress underscores the need for tougher academic standards, state schools chief William C. Bosher Jr. said Thursday.
``Whatever the cause may be,'' Bosher told members of the state Board of Education, ``that is not where we want to be. So we continue to have our work cut out for us.''
Bosher broke the news of the test results as members debated overhauling the state's ``Standards of Learning,'' the guideposts that public schools use to teach math, science, English and social studies.
Virginia was the only state where reading scores dropped significantly, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics, the federal agency that administers the test.
The National Assessment of Education Progress, given to students in 40 states last year, is designed to show how well students understand and analyze what they read. Students were judged to be at the advanced, proficient or basic reading levels, or below.
Only slightly more than 3 percent of Virginia's fourth-graders, representing 150 schools, were tested, but state officials said the results remain disturbing.
Of the 2,719 Virginia students tested, 23 percent were reading on a level considered at or above proficiency, a drop of 5 percentage points since 1992, the results show. The national average for proficiency was 24 percent last year.
``It clearly indicates a need for rigorous, jargon-free expectations in reading and language arts,'' Bosher said.
The difficulty, board members said, is in setting standards that have broad support, especially given the politically charged environment surrounding the debate.
Draft proposals for the revised standards bear the imprint of appointees of conservative Republican Gov. George Allen. The governor's ``back to basics'' approach has run into criticism from many educators and parents as being too fact-based and creating unrealistic expectations for younger students.
As the board wrapped up a two-day retreat to debate revising the current standards, members said they think the consensus exists to adopt updated math and science standards.
But sharp disagreement remains over social studies - what kids need to know and when it should be taught. The board voted unanimously to form an advisory committee to help find common ground.
Board President James P. Jones has said he hopes to adopt updated standards by July, when Allen will appoint two new members and will gain a majority on the nine-member panel.
At one point during discussion, board member Alan L. Wurtzel suggested that the state could throw out its standards on social studies, which include history, government and geography, and let local school districts go their own way. The key, he said, is teaching kids to read and write.
``If we could get kids to read and write and understand science,'' Wurtzel said, ``we'd be light years ahead.''
KEYWORDS: STANDARDIZED ACHIEVEMENT TEST READING VIRGINIA SCHOOLS
VIRGINIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION TEST SCORE by CNB