Franklin Schargel’s Blog

The National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) released a report “Listening to Latinas: Barriers to High School Graduation”.  The new report that takes a close look at the drop-out crisis in the Latino community. The latest data show that 41% of Latina students do not graduate on time with a standard high school diploma.

The study reveals that as Latinos work to provide for their families, education too often takes a back seat to survival. Often times Latina students must take on parental duties to either younger siblings, or, in a community with the highest teen pregnancy rate, their own children. Cultural stigmas contribute to low self-esteem and insecurities, allowing society to ignore Latina students who then trade-in the possibility of a future career, for a future predestined by bias, discrimination, and a lack of support.

The study offers some recommendations. The recommendations include calling on schools, policymakers, and government agencies to: invest in the future of Latino children through high-quality early learning programs, connect Latinas with role models, ensure that all students are prepared for post-secondary educational opportunities, ensure safe school environments that are culturally inclusive and free from discrimination, help Latino parents get involved in their children’s education, improve efforts to prevent teen pregnancy and provide support for pregnant and parenting students, and require better data collection and promote school accountability.

With the media’s  attention focused on the spread of the H1N1 Virus as schools  open I thought  I would direct my attention to how schools should deliver instruction in the event of 100’s of students being absent or the need to close individual schools for an extended period of time.

Before anything happens, school leaders need to examine their emergency plans and to see how they are equipped to deliver instruction through the use of technology and what methods will be used to keep open lines of communication to students, staff and parents.  Next, staff should be made aware of this plan.

Schools should order a supply of Purell or other antibacterial gels for every classroom, the cafeteria and every office.  Machines dispensing these gels, similar to the one’s found on ships, should be placed in the halls.  Students should be instructed on the proper way to wash hands.  Signs should be placed in student and staff restrooms.  Tissues to cover sneezes should be supplied to every classroom.

Be proactive about disseminating information as it becomes available.  Establish “phone trees” with staff and with parents and students to quell rumors about school closings and numbers of students and staff that have been taken ill.

Post information about the school website in local churches and supermarkets.

The United States Department of Education has a list of resources for teachers and parents (www.ed.gov) including subject-matter lessons that are aligned with state standards.

Encourage students to set up “study chains” through text messaging to send questions back and forth to one another about material.

Some districts have encouraged teachers to remain in contact with their students through the Internet in case of flu-related closings.

Resources:

Centers for Disease Control; https://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/k12

US Department of Education H1N1 Flu and U.S. Schools Answers to Frequently asked Questions: http;//www.ed.gov/adminis/lead/safety/emergencyplan/pandemic/guidance/flu-faqs.pdf

Talking to Children About H1N1: A Parent Resource: Produced by the National PTA National Association  of School Nurses and National Association of School Psychologists) http;//www.nasponline.org/resources/Talking_With_Children_About_Flu_Final_pdf

The College Board, the producer of the SAT, reported that average national SAT scores for the high school class of 2009 dropped two points compared with last year. However the number of minority students who took the exam increased from up from 38% to a 40% minority participation rate among test-takers this year. Also up from previous years: More than a third of students say they are first-generation college students whose parents never went to college, and more than a quarter said English is not their first language.  We therefore have a broader and more culturally diverse base of test takers.

On one end, students who identified themselves as Asian, Asian-American or Pacific Islander posted a 13-point gain. On the other end, students who identified themselves as Puerto Rican posted a 9-point drop in average scores.

The differences in total SAT scores by ethnicity was most extreme between Asian students (who had an average total score of 1623 out of a possible 2400) and black students (who averaged 1276, a four-point drop). Puerto Rican students averaged 1345. The national average was 1509. Top score is 800 in each of the three SAT sections.

Total scores also dropped two points for white students (who averaged 1581) and Mexican and Mexican American students (who averaged 1362). They increased two points for American Indian or Alaskan natives (average score 1448).

Disparities in scores by gender and income also widened:

“¢Average scores dropped 5 points for females and 2 points for males. While females represent more than half (53.5%) of test takers, their total average score (1496) is 27 points below the average score for males (1523).

“¢The highest average score of all (1702, up 26 points) was posted by students who said their families earned more than $200,000 a year. Students who reported family incomes of less than $20,000 a year averaged 1321, up 1 point.

The report’s analysis notes that students who had completed a core curriculum, taken their school’s most rigorous courses and familiarized themselves with the test were among the strongest performers.

For example, students who took an Advanced Placement or honors math course scored an average of 79 points above the national average math score. And students who had previously taken the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test scored 121 points higher on average than those who did not take the test.

While I am not a supporter of tests as a sole criteria for academic success, it is good news that more and more students are taking the examination.  This is an indication that more students are graduating (as opposed to dropping out) and that maybe more of them plan to attend college.

Some secondary schools are successfully graduating their students prepared for what lies ahead-one in three high schools graduate 90 percent of their students. Unfortunately, there is a small subset of chronically underperforming high schools that are poorly serving some or all of their students and are responsible for a majority of nation’s dropout crisis.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have identified almost 2,000 high schools (about 13 percent of American high schools) where the typical freshman class shrinks by 40 percent or more by the time the students reach their senior year. These “dropout factories ” serve large numbers of minority and low-income students, and have fewer resources and less-qualified teachers than schools in more affluent neighborhoods with larger numbers of white students. In fact, 38 percent of African American students and 33 percent of Latino students attend dropout factories.

The nearly 2,000 dropout factories turn out 51 percent of the nation’s dropouts. They produce 81 percent of all Native American dropouts, 73 percent of all African American dropouts, and 66 percent of all Hispanic dropouts. This is powerful information. By addressing the persistent failure of this relatively small number of high schools – by transforming the nation’s dropout factories – we can fundamentally improve educational outcomes for America’s students and better their impact on America’s society.

Every state has at least one school and many have more than one.  Visit https://www.all4ed.org/about_the_crisis/schools/dropout to see which schools in your state are “dropout factories”.

The Wall Street Journal published an article dealing with the lack of educational achievement as indicated by ACT test scores.

Only about a quarter of the 2009 high school graduates taking the ACT admissions test have the skills to succeed in college, according to a report on the exam that shows little improvement over results from the 2008 graduating class.

The Iowa City, Iowa-based ACT said 23% of this year’s high school graduates had scores that indicated they were ready for college in all four ACT subject areas, or had at least a 75% chance of earning a grade of C or better in entry-level courses. Last year, a similar ACT analysis found that 22% of the class of 2008 was college-ready.

About 1.48 million of the 3.3 million members of the high school class of 2009 took the ACT, typically in their junior year. ACT said its report was based on comparing students’ ACT test scores in English, reading, math and science with the grades they earned in related courses during their first year in college.

The report comes as budget concerns are forcing many state universities to cut back on slots for new students and raise admission standards. Many are also eliminating remedial courses, making it tougher for unprepared students to stay in school.

Among single subject areas, the level of preparedness was worst in science, where only 28% of students were ready for college-level biology. Another problem was math, where 42% were deemed prepared for college algebra.

.A Department of Education report in April on the results from the National Assessment of Education Progress found that U.S. high school students haven’t made any significant progress in reading or math for nearly four decades.

ACT said about 40% of 2009 test-takers were unable to use the correct adverb or adjective to form a sentence, or couldn’t use the correct preposition in a phrase. The same proportion couldn’t solve multi-step math problems involving percentages and fractions.

Bob Schaeffer of FairTest, an antitesting advocacy group, said the class of ’09 was in the 5th grade when the NCLB law passed. “No Child promised to improve college readiness,” he said. “The data show, in fact, that scores have been stagnant that achievement gaps are essentially unchanged.”

I disagree with Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for Excellent Education who is quoted in the article as saying, “The only way you improve these numbers and get them higher is by improving your secondary schools.”  No, the only way to get these numbers higher is by having the colleges not accept students who are not prepared to do college work.  If students and high schools are made aware that colleges will not accept substandard high school work maybe both parties will work harder.

John Bell, Tony Thacker and I are working on a book dealing with Teacher Leadership and we would appreciate it if you help us by completing a survey.  Please go to:
https://alex.state.al.us/phpESP/public/survey.php?name=Teacher_Leadership_Survey

This is a voluntary survey that seeks to collect and analyze information about educators’ current understanding of the role of teacher leader in public education. The intent of the questions is to develop a comprehensive understanding of teacher leadership and the degree to which teacher leadership is utilized and implemented. Responses will be used to support state work and for research. Survey content may also support scholarly writings about the subject.

Thank you.

I have a regular article appearing in SEEN Magazine starting with the Fall 2009 issue.  SEEN is published by the SouthEast Education Network, Knight Publications and is distributed tri-annually to schools, teachers, principals, superintendents, state departments of education and universities.

This issue focuses on the background of school dropouts as well as No Child Left Behind emphasis on the problem.

Contact 866-761-1247 for additional information.

Ontario School-Based Program Helps Prevent Teen Dating Violence, Especially Boys

A school-based program that integrates information about healthy relationships into the existing ninth-grade curriculum appears to reduce adolescent dating violence and increase condom use two and a half years later, according to a report from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). The effects of the low-cost intervention implemented in some Ontario schools appear stronger in boys.

The report published in the August issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine found that approximately one in 10 to one in five high school”“aged teens are hit, slapped or beaten by an individual they are dating each year, according to background information in the article. Dating violence among adolescents often leads to intimate partner violence in adulthood and also is associated with injuries, unsafe sex, substance use and suicide attempts.

Dr. David A. Wolfe, Director of CAMH’s Centre for Prevention Science, and colleagues conducted from 2001 to 2004 a randomized trial of a 21-lesson curriculum delivered by teachers with special training in the dynamics of dating violence and healthy relationships.

The program, known as the “Fourth R: Skills for Youth Relationships,” was taught to 968 students at 10 randomly selected high schools. Dating violence prevention was integrated with core lessons about healthy relationships, sexual health and substance use prevention using interactive exercises. Relationship skills to promote safer decision making with peers and dating partners were also emphasized. Another 754 students at 10 different schools were assigned to a control group, where similar objectives were targeted but without training or materials.

When the adolescents were surveyed two and a half years later””at the end of grade 11″”rates of physical dating violence were greater in the control students (9.8 percent) than in the students who participated in the program (7.4 percent). Although both boys and girls typically perpetrate dating violence, the intervention had a stronger effect on boys; 7.1 percent of boys in the control group and 2.7 percent in the intervention group reported physical dating violence, compared with 12.1 percent of girls in the control group and 11.9 percent of those in the intervention group. Sexually active boys in the program also reported a higher rate of condom use (114 of 168 or 67.9 percent vs. 65 of 111 or 58.6 percent).

Dr. Wolfe stresses teaching healthy relationships at an early age, to reduce the significant impact of violence on health and well-being across the lifespan. “Adolescence is confusing enough, but when you couple this with peer pressure and self esteem issues, some youth can be easily overwhelmed,” says Dr. Wolfe. “This is a time of life when youth may first start dating and experimenting with drug use and sex – which can be difficult especially when you consider that kids are just learning how to socialize with one another in a more mature context.”

The program met mandated education requirements in Ontario, meaning that no additional class time, scheduling or human resources assistance was needed. The average cost of training and materials was $16 (Canadian) per student.

The study concluded that interventions using skills-based interactive delivery can be combined effectively; and that with supplementary training, teachers can implement evidence-based prevention programs to garner significant improvements over status-quo classroom methods. Similar to efforts made with academic subjects, the best policy may involve earlier introduction of these important topics at a lower grade level, with increasing knowledge and practice introduced in core courses throughout high school.

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada’s largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world’s leading research centres in the area of addiction and mental health. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development, prevention and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues.

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DISCLAIMER: Information on this site is not to be used for diagnosis, treatment or referral services and CAMH does not provide diagnostic, treatment or referral services through the Internet. Individuals should contact their personal physician, and/or their local addiction or mental health agency for further information.
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© 2008 Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
A PAHO/WHO Collaborating Centre. Fully affiliated with the University of Toronto.