THE HEADLINE:
Greenwich schools get a mixed report card from the state - CT POST
By Colin "BOE BROWN NOSE" Gustafson
Despite some gains, a quarter of Greenwich public schools, for the second year in a row, have been cited for underperformance on state exams.
Greenwich High, Central Middle and Western Middle schools have all been deemed as "in need of improvement," according to a report released by the state.....
....Also, New Lebanon School failed to make adequate yearly progress toward these targets during the 2009-10 school year. If the Byram elementary school comes up short again, it must give parents the option to transfer.
....The district as a whole did not make adequate yearly progress this year. But it did produce big-enough gains in its academic trouble spots to receive so-called "safe harbor" status, which allows a district to avoid being cited by the state as underperforming long as it continues to improve...
THE LINK:
http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Quarter-of-Greenwich-public-schools-cited-for-611964.php
THE COMMENT:
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (often abbreviated in print as NCLB) is a United States Act of Congress that was originally proposed by the administration of President George W. Bush immediately after taking office.
Many Greenwich parents argue that the Greenwich Board of Education had failed the towns students.
NCLB has remedy issues like Greenwich teachers teaching outside their areas of expertise,
NCLB has started to increase complacency in the failing Greenwich schools
Many Greenwich parents have voiced support for NCLB provisions, because the Greenwich Board Of Education standards had failed to provide adequate oversight over special education.
NCLB has forced the Greenwich public school administrators to monitor Adequate Yearly Progress of these students in need.
Greenwich supporters of NCLB note that one of the strong positive points is the increased accountability that is now required of the Greenwich public school system, its administrators and its teachers.
Now the Greenwich public school system is required to pass yearly tests that will judge how much improvement the town's students have made over the fiscal year.
Now the Greenwich Board of education must pay attention to minority students in Greenwich, because the NCLB seeks to narrow class and racial gaps in the town's school performance by creating common expectations for all.
The good news is that the Greenwich Public School Superintendent is now forced to focus his attention on the academic achievement of traditionally under-served Greenwich children, such as low-income students, students with disabilities, and students of color.
Previously, the Greenwich Board of Education had measured only average school performance, allowing the town's schools to be highly rated even if they had large achievement gaps between affluent and disadvantaged students.
Greenwich Public Schools are now focussed on increases the quality of education, because administrators are required to improve individual school performance, or the parents can opt out.
If a Greenwich public school fails to meet Adequate Yearly Progress targets two or more years running, the local schools must offer eligible Greenwich children the chance to transfer to higher-performing local schools.
However, this process can be bureaucratically delayed when the State Of Connecticut gives the Greenwich Board Of Education a second chance to demonstrate proficiency, even for subgroups that do not meet State Minimum Achievement standards, through a process called "safe harbor".
Basically state education bureaucrats are telling Greenwich parents that your over paid and school administrators made some, but they did not make adequate yearly progress. They sort of got a D-, but they didn't fail to meet the statewide standards.
The state education bureaucrats tell Greenwich parents that their failed public schools have been put in a "safe harbor" as students continue to suffer. I guess "safe harbor" is sort of like Limbo.
And these disadvantaged and special education children are in "limbo", because they held up from opting out of a failed Greenwich elementary school and moving into a better Greenwich public school.
And nothing can be done until another NCLB action happens.
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"In the first place, God made idiots. That was for practice. Then he made school boards."
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- George Washington Carver
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- Victor Hugo
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