Summary June 24, 2007 Follow links for updated information
From Memphis to Boston
From Memphis to Boston
The new superintendent of Boston City Schools is from Memphis. The districts have more in common than you think, including "minority" populations around 76%. (Although how you can be a minority when you comprise 3/4ths of the students is only the kind of twisted logic you see in the media.) The union, however, is all prepared to oppose her reforms. Nothing new there. What is new is how really bad Boston schools are in educating Hispanics or Blacks.
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Dropout Rates A story in the Boston Globe about dropout rates in Boston and in Massachusetts got us wondering how they compared to other states. We did find out and the number of dropouts is shocking. Why they are dropping out isn't clear, but in Masschusetts, it isn't the exit examination. Across the state, more than 65 percent of the 2,584 high school seniors who dropped out last year passed the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.
There's probably some connection to the story above. Dropout Rates A story in the Boston Globe about dropout rates in Boston and in Massachusetts got us wondering how they compared to other states. We did find out and the number of dropouts is shocking. Why they are dropping out isn't clear, but in Masschusetts, it isn't the exit examination. Across the state, more than 65 percent of the 2,584 high school seniors who dropped out last year passed the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.
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Then and Now
A wonderful piece of reporting by the New York Daily News looks at a Harlem children in an 1984-1985 class picture. They were able to track all but 6 of the 23 children. Great stories and worthy journalism. In Two Parts.
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Standardized Testing
The war on standardized testing continues. This time, a New Jersey paper parrots the concerns of a union spokesman. The concern is that the "brightest and best" students are being ignored as teachers concentrate on those most in need. Actually, their point is a little more selfish. They're afraid that as concerned parents find out more about their schools, they'll leave for private or parochial schools. They also are terrified that an exodus of the "brightest and the best" will make them look even worse in testing. The story cites a Rand study that they don't like to and they deliberately misinterpret. We link to it.
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