District grades
The Clark County School District unveiled its No Child Left Behind report card for the recently concluded school year on Thursday and, like those from previous years, it was a mixed bag.
The big picture was fairly positive. For the second consecutive year, fewer campuses were listed as failing schools under federal proficiency standards. The number of exemplary schools increased from six in 2005-06 to 11 in 2006-07. The number of high-achieving schools rose from 34 to 43. And students of all demographics did well enough on standardized tests for the entire district to be considered in compliance with the No Child Left Behind guidelines.
"I hope to never again hear that CCSD is a failing school district," Superintendent Walt Rulffes said Thursday.
Less encouraging was news that four schools could be in line for state takeover after failing to meet standards for six consecutive years. And no middle schools or high schools earned an "exemplary" tag.
Any judgments must be tempered against the fact that No Child Left Behind emphasizes the aptitudes of subgroups of students over broader populations. If any one of 37 racial, socioeconomic or linguistic subgroups fail — such as special education students who receive subsidized school meals — the entire school fails. The performance of a couple of kids unfairly placed many campuses on the "failing" list.
That said, some successes are worth recognizing. Squires Elementary School of North Las Vegas made the district’s "high-achieving" list with an enrollment entirely from low-income families. More than 60 percent of the school’s kids are English Language Learners.
The school’s teachers brainstorm daily about their lesson plans, students in need of improvement get to learn from high-achieving kids in group problem-solving exercises, and nearly half of all students participate in a two-hour, after-school program that emphasizes literacy and arts.
"It’s all about expectations," said Squires Elementary Assistant Principal Rose Ballard. "Kids will live up to what you believe they can do."
Give that woman a medal. School district administrators should take everything that’s working at Squires, copy it, and mandate its implementation at schools that aren’t up to snuff.
This year’s report card should also signal to administrators that elementary schools aren’t the problem — the valley’s children are still losing ground in middle school and high school. Instead of marching to Carson City every other year demanding that tens of millions of dollars be spent on universal full-day kindergarten, the district’s appointed and elected leaders should re-focus much of their energy on their secondary schools.
