The headline in The Dispatch Tuesday says it all
– the latest STAR data shows that a majority of students in
Gilroy Unified are not succeeding. The fact that a quarter of our
high school students have not passed the CAHSEE is troubling alone.
This test is geared toward sixth and seventh grade work, yet a
sizable number of high school sophomores
have not mastered material they should have grasped three or
more years ago.
The headline in The Dispatch Tuesday says it all – the latest STAR data shows that a majority of students in Gilroy Unified are not succeeding. The fact that a quarter of our high school students have not passed the CAHSEE is troubling alone. This test is geared toward sixth and seventh grade work, yet a sizable number of high school sophomores have not mastered material they should have grasped three or more years ago.
Across almost all grade levels, students in the proficient and advanced categories are losing ground. The number of students who are far below basic (the lowest 20th percent) is dropping, but they are nowhere near reaching proficiency. Across all grade levels, upwards of a third of all students are below basic levels. The achievement gap is narrowing as more of our students become mediocre. Something has got to give.
Instead of slamming the people who are steering us down this path, I would like to think positively. Change can happen, but it won’t be easy.
The oft-repeated district goal of having 90 percent of all students reach proficiency by the end of this school year is unattainable. We should accept this fact and move on. We now know what doesn’t work. Let’s not waste any more time discussing how we can get to Xanadu and instead start dealing with what might work.
Here are a few ideas:
n Students: Implement student contracts for this school year. Explain the purpose of an academic education. Remind students that a free education is not really free, it will require effort. Set all students up with the expectation that homework will be completed or consequences will ensue. Students who are disrupting the classroom experience for teachers and other students need to get reprimanded and disciplined from Aug. 30 and each day thereafter.
n Parents: Parents will need to sign these contracts as well. Nothing shapes up a kid quicker than an angry parent who is weary from being bombarded with phone calls from the principal. Three strikes for a student should involve parents attending Saturday school with their child.
n Teachers: Teachers are professionals. It time we allow them to do their jobs. Provide our teachers with a good set of tools (curriculum, supplies, etc.) and a room full of students who understand why they are in school and teachers will produce. Do not pilot any new programs, add any more standardized tests, or require their presence at any more professional development classes. Teachers who are not in the classroom passing their knowledge on to students should be placed back in the classroom.
n Principals: Make sure that your teachers are happy, your students are safe, and your parents are involved. Make sure that students who need help have an after school program available at your site.
n Administrators: In Gilroy Unified, we have twice as many administrators as Salinas or Morgan Hill. Some of these people should get back in the classroom.
n School Board: Set direction for the superintendent. I believe it is in your job description.
I am talking now as a parent. I am putting myself in the place of a parent whose child is in the “far below basic” category. What would I want for my child if they were in this range?
I would want the same thing for my child that parents of advanced students and parents of those middle-of-the-pack students want for their kids. I have heard from parents across a broad spectrum in this regard. Parents want a good solid curriculum that prepares their student for college. Period. It really is that simple. Even parents of students who may not enter college upon graduating from high school want the possibility of college opportunities for their child.
This summer, I am saddened to hear of dozens of students leaving Gilroy Unified. They are not leaving for religious reasons.
Instead, they are transferring to public schools in Morgan Hill, where the school district is happy to take our students and the increase in funding is really appreciated.
There is much work to be done in Gilroy Unified.
Let’s do it.
