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Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2008 > August > 26 > Entry
Report cards out, Dayton last in Ohio again
The good news is Dayton schools somehow managed to escape “academic emergency” on its state report card this year, but still raked last in Ohio for test performance. Meanwhile three northern valley schools were among the fastest gainers in test performance.
The state added a new wrinkle to the report cards this year, pushing districts up a level if test scores grew enough. For top rated districts who also made their growth targets, there is a new top category of “excellent with distinction.” There are 73 Ohio districts in that category but none in academic emergency and only nine in the whole state in academic watch.
I am not sure why Ohio keeps the emergency rating it the worst rated district in the state does not end up there. And academic watch only has nine districts? The scores don’t suggest we’re doing that well.
Permalink | Comments (15) | Post your comment | Categories: Dayton Public Schools, Schools and Politics, Testing
Comments
By pepsi hunter
April 10, 2009 12:32 PM | Link to this
as a student at the dayton early college academy i say that there is something wrong with the schools and school system……not only do the kids not care but the teachers as well. I am doing a report on the dps school system in comparison to the early and mid 1900’s and have not found anything positive…I have many friends who attend public schools who say that they do not get any support from majority of the staff and being a child i can say that no student will do anything if they are not encouraged by anyone….expecially the teachers!!! The problem i have is the fact that these school buildings are getting rebuilt when the schools dont even have new books and is sitting in a class full of 20 to 30 students….Dayton will never get ahead when nobody is modivated to teach us… the students….they dont care they just go for a pay check i strongly feel that way… not only does the system needs to be revibed but also the student and teachers attitudes….Thank youBy deb
August 29, 2008 8:24 PM | Link to this
As long as parents continue to send kids to school who aren’t prepared, then schools that serve that population are going to continue to struggle. What do people expect DPS to do when $30 million has been cut from its budget??? Beats the heck out of me why the Sinclair Levy passed….Those who utilize Sinclair should pay for it…I voted against the levy….But educating our young people is important, and while the stack is heavily against many of the students in DPS, there are still wonderful things going on…..And you won’t find a more dedicated group of educators and company than those folks who are walking the halls at any DPS building. My hats off to all the wonderful folks who work at DPS!!!By a dps teacher
August 29, 2008 3:52 PM | Link to this
I agree urban girl, Kids are allowed to pass without knowing the skills. even those who don’t pass the third grade test pass to the fourth. That was not supposed to happen. But kids are recommended for retention and those recommendations are not honored. Worse we don’t have plans in place to help the strugglers. Last year we had two reading intervention teachers and one math intervention teacher in every building. This year that was cut to one reading intervention (Title) teacher and one math intervention teacher in each building. What does that mean—one person is supposed to help all the students who are struggling readers in all the grades K-8th). It’s not possible. And the policy the last few years has been to not take the lowest kids to reading intervention classes because their chances of passing the test are minimal. Our reading intervention teachers also have to focus on the test grades. This means K-1 is largely not serviced, when that is the time we could really turn them around. We need more options to help the strugglers. Otherwise how will we ever improve the chances of our students to pass the test.By null
August 29, 2008 11:48 AM | Link to this
Urban Girl, as a teacher you should know that the district can retain a student once and then they must be placed (not promoted)into the next grade. That is a State issue, not DPS.By urban_girl75
August 28, 2008 5:55 PM | Link to this
DPS has a huge problem when children are allowed to pass from one grade to the next and are UNABLE to read or solve basic math problems. Kindergarten students very rarely are retained. Most go on to 1st grade and do not know their letters, sounds, colors, etc… Parents who allow their children to be “assigned” from one grade to the other are doing them a big disservice. I teach in an elementary school and have 27 students in my room. More than half are far, far below the grade level they are in. Teachers are then asked to provide services to those children PLUS teach everything else from the standards. Instead of playing catch-up all the time, DPS needs to look into prevention strategies so we are not passing on children who can’t even read. How does DPS expect our lovely test scores to go up if services are not in place for struggling students in the younger grades?By Oldprof
August 28, 2008 9:29 AM | Link to this
Hater says I fail to mention that Dayton is nearly always last in whatever standards the state sets. Well, I didn’t mention it because it’s not true. Dayton was in the middle rating (“continuous improvement”) a couple of years ago—not “near the bottom” of the ratings in that year. But people like Hater decided that Dayton couldn’t afford to keep up, and so the backsliding started. We get what we pay for…and suggesting that we copy other urban districts who “got it right” is a facetious, since all other urban districts in Ohio are in similar straits. One might conclude the problem is Ohio’s and not just Dayton’s or Cincinnati’s or Cleveland’s—and that the solution is to revamp the state system and require our legislators to get past their criminal neglect of their duties to fund education, rather than leaving it up to the vagarities of the Haters.By Caroline
August 27, 2008 10:28 PM | Link to this
I agree with “who is left.” The problem with Dayton schools is very complex. You can’t blame the district or the teachers for the failings. The failing schools are related to all of the other problems that Dayton is having—the lack of jobs, high poverty rates, crime, etc. DPS teachers cannot teach in a vacuum! The levy really needs to be passed in Dayton. If it doesn’t pass, the problems will get worse and worse.By Who is left
August 26, 2008 9:30 PM | Link to this
That Dayton is last cannot be a surprise. Look at the numbers: DPS has been losing enrollment for years. Some go to charters, but most have fled for the surburbs or moved out of the area entirely because of our old-style economy. So, on the one hand, the kids with parents who care enough to look around for a better school have left (involved parents) and the ones who have the ability to move have left (those with a job or skills of some kind). What’s left? I think you get the idea. What’s working at other urban districts? Not much, really. They have the same thing Dayton does: pockets of decent buildings surrounded by a majority of poor performing ones. Believe me, if someone knew how to fix this mess, DPS would hire them. The problem is complex beyond belief.By School Supporter
August 26, 2008 8:55 PM | Link to this
charterschoolhater writes, “Why don�t they look at urban districts that got it right?” What if that’s Akron or Toledo? Will Daytonians swallow their pride? Can we adopt their approaches to our situation successfully?By MC
August 26, 2008 8:26 PM | Link to this
Sorry Charterschoolhater, I do not agree. You cannot blame the school system for all the problems. Parents send kids to school that have all kinds of problems. The kids learn but slowly. I will be voting yes and so will all my friends living in the city. It is never a good idea to vote down a school levy. As the schools go, so does the community.By DPS Teacher
August 26, 2008 8:19 PM | Link to this
Last year, $30 million was cut from the DPS budget, most of it from classrooms. This year, we have a new (interim) superintendent who has cut the “fat” from the administration and put the Ludlow 2 building for sale. All of us in the classrooms are feeling better and working even harder for our students. Yes, we would like our scores to improve but the deck has been DRAMATICALLY stacked against the kids by the (Republican) federal and state governments for the past several years. We know from experience that cities that have the highest rates of poverty have the lowest standardized test scores…it is as predictable as the sun rising in the east. However, we must still ask (beg) for a YES vote for our levy this year. Our kids (and they are ALL “our” kids whether you like it or not) must have the tools to grow and become informed workers and citizens. Yes, we have hard times now, and they may continue. However, this levy is reasonable in light of the drastic needs the students of DPS face daily.By a dps teacher
August 26, 2008 8:14 PM | Link to this
NCLB requires districts to make progress. Without allowing districts to get out of academic emergency by improving, what hope would we ever have. You can’t go from few kids passing to 75% of all kids passing which is the state target. Its a fact that our kids start out behind and while we have a long way to go—I have seen a huge difference in the way we teach in the last six years. We are teaching to the standards in DPS and while improvement is slow, it is improvement. Shouldn’t we get some points for that?By charterschoolhater
August 26, 2008 7:24 PM | Link to this
Oldprof is right about the states contant changing standards. What he fails to mention though is the sad but true tale that Dayton is always nearly last in whatever standards the state chooses to use. That is very telling to me. What is shows is the truly pathetic level that the quality of education for Dayton students has fallen. Whatever the folks in charge is doing is not working. Why don’t they look at urban districts that got it right, and there are some and emulate them. Maybe this interim superintendent can set them straight. I hope so. All I want is to see some results before I part with anymore of my hard earned money.By chaterschoolhater
August 26, 2008 8:38 AM | Link to this
Dayton is last in the state, again. And they want me to vote to give them more money. This I say to the voters of Dayton. I am voting No, and I urge you do the same. Not only are the schools financially bankrupt. But they are educationally bankrupt, as well.By Oldprof
August 26, 2008 8:15 AM | Link to this
Scott, many of us have long written here that the Ohio report card’s standards change every year. OBE makes up the grading scale after the fact; no school district can be sure what rating it will get. This year, OBE seems to have gone for the “Lake Woebegone Effect”: all the children are above average. Next year, maybe they’ll go back to the “flog the starving” standard.