The Texas Educational Agency (TEA) recently issued its accountability ratings for the 2001-02 school year. Here’s how it works: To be ranked “exemplary,” every sub-population (Anglo, Hispanic, African American, etc.) in every subject must score at least a 90 percent passing rate; the “recognized” ranking requires at least 80 percent of every sub-population passed; “acceptable” means at least 55 percent. Here’s how Lake Highlands area schools performed.
Lake Highlands High School Acceptable
Lake Highlands Freshman Center Acceptable
Lake Highlands Junior High Acceptable
Forest Meadow Junior High Low Performing
Aikin Elementary Exemplary
Forest Lane Academy Acceptable
Lake Highlands Elementary Acceptable
Merriman Park Elementary Recognized
Moss Haven Elementary Acceptable
Northlake Elementary Recognized
Skyview Elementary Acceptable
Stults Road Elementary Recognized
Wallace Elementary Recognized
White Rock Elementary Acceptable
As you might imagine, we are deeply concerned when a school is ranked “low performing,” because it seems as if the entire school is failing. This is not the case at Forest Meadow. Here are all the scores from FMJH.
All Students passing rates
Reading 91.7%
Math 87.9%
Writing 80.5%
Anglo passing rates
Reading 99.6%
Math 98.5%
Writing 95.9%
Hispanic passing rates
Reading 84.8%
Math 76.5%
Writing 62.5%
African American passing rates
Reading 86.0%
Math 81.1%
Writing 69.2%
Economically disadvantaged passing rates
Reading 84.1%
Math 80.1%
Writing 54.2%
As you can see, the passing rates of economically disadvantaged children in the area of writing dipped below the 55 percent cutoff by less than 1 percent, and thus FMJH received the undesirable designation.
Interestingly, Just for the Kids (JFTK), a recognized organization that rewards schools it identifies as “Best in Class,” cited Forest Meadow for success in algebra, social studies and writing, and Lake Highlands Junior High for algebra and social studies. JFTK based its evaluation upon students in attendance over a two-year period and focused on growth and improvement. Our TEA state rankings count the scores of all students enrolled, even if a student registered the day before the test.
Skyview Elementary deserves special accolades this year. In a heartbreaker, the school missed a “recognized” designation by .9 of one percent in economically disadvantaged reading with a 79.1 percent passing rate. White Rock and Lake Highlands elementaries also just barely missed this designation.
Academic excellence is an expectation for all of our schools. We are proud of our SAT scores, National Merit finalists and scholarships, and we’re also proud of being named one of the top 100 school districts in the nation by the Wall Street Journal. But if we fail to address the needs of even one child, then we have not met our goal of high achievement for all students.
