Rhode Island Performed 40% Worse than Massachusetts on PARCC
GoLocalProv News Team and Kate Nagle
Rhode Island Performed 40% Worse than Massachusetts on PARCC
Meanwhile in Massachusetts, over 50% of students met expectations in both categories on the recent PARCC test -- 60% of students in grades 3 though 8 met or exceeded expectations for English, and 52% did so for math.
Rhode Island reported Tuesday that 36% of students who took the PARCC assessment met or exceeded expectations in ELA, and 25% for math, for grades 3-10. For grades 3-8, the percentage was similar for math at 25%, and just slightly higher for ELA (37%).
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The “cut scores” vary state by state, but states are ultimately responsible for determining who is meeting expectations — and who is not.
Christine Lopes Metcalf with the education policy and advocacy group RI-CAN pointed out that “twenty years ago, Massachusetts set their standards much higher than Rhode Island and most other states.”
“They committed to funding their plan to meet those higher expectations, tweaked things along the way and were steadfast in their promise to keeping high standards. Now that we have an assessment that is much more closely aligned to higher expectations, it’s not surprising that Massachusetts has an advantage,” said Metcalf-Lopes.
“But, they also have improvements to make. Rhode Island has taken the first steps in its path by adopting higher standards and creating a funding formula that is centered-around the student,” continued Metcalf-Lopes. “Now more than ever, we need to be steadfast in our commitment to making sure every student in our state is supported and reaches the highest of expectations.”
Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo issued the following statement on Tuesday following the "disappointing" state scores.
State — and Urban Core — in Perspective
RIDE pointed out in its release how the state’s urban core — Providence, Pawtucket, Central Falls, and Woonsockett— struggled in comparison to the rest of the state
In Rhode Island’s core urban communities, 18 percent of students met expectations in English and 11 percent met expectations in mathematics; in all other communities, 43 percent of students met expectations in English and 31 percent met expectations in mathematics – leading to gaps of 25 percentage points and 20 percentage points, respectively.
Meanwhile in Worcester, Massachusetts, 41 percent met the state expectation in English and 29 percent for math — still higher than Rhode Island’s scores as a whole.
“My initial reaction is that it's a baseline year, and as we transition, every district struggles with new assessment,” said Providence School Board President Keith Oliveira. “There was an expectation that scores wouldn’t be overwhelming.”
Oliveira said he anticipates that Providene -- and statewide - scores would improve as the state continues to implement the common core curriculum.
“We’ll use the assessment for what it’s intended to do -- look at the data as an important tool for teaching and learning strategies,” said Oliveira. “We need to make sure our curriculum is aligned to the common core, and our teachers our trained. It’s still being rolled out, I think we've done well so far, but more training needs to be done so they understand the grade level expectations, and make sure they're comfortable with the delivery of the content. It's a baseline, I expect we'll see improvement."
Contesting the Test
"The buzzwords we keep hearing are "lets get back to the job of "teaching and learning" Well, that would be fine if we had excellent, developmentally appropriate standards - which we do not; and if teachers weren't being asked to basically teach to this PARCC test - which they are...it is beyond frustrating," continued Lehand. "Then think about an art or music teacher who must get evaluated on an ela or math test score - how does that even make any sense?"
RIDE said Tuesday it was committed leading efforts to “invest in our teachers through high-quality preparation programs and continuous professional development; empower our principals to lead strong school communities; ensure that every student has access to rigorous coursework that builds upon their strengths and interests and prepares them for their futures; and partner with parents and families.
The Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity, however, said following the release of the results that "one-size-fits-all Government schools [are] not adequately preparing many students for college and life."
"The disappointing results among RI students in the recently released PARCC test scores re-enforce the need to empower families with additional educational choice options," according to a statement Tuesday from the Center.
"Education is the civil rights issue of our time. Every parent wants an effective education for their children that prepares them for college, career, and life. When government schools fail to inspire students, it is our moral obligation to provide each and every child with an immediate and better option," commented Mike Stenhouse, CEO for the Center. "Our proposed ESA legislation empowers parents to choose a public or private educational path for their children that will motivate and challenge them."
The RI High Schools with the Most Absentee Students
#59 Ponaganset High School
Location: Foster and Glocester
Total # Students: 684
% Chronically Absent: 4%
#58 Beacon Charter High School for the Arts
Location: Woonsocket
Total # of Students: 227
% Chronically Absent: 6%
#57 Barrington High School
Location: Barrington
Total # of Students: 1,027
% Chronically Absent: 7%
#56 North Smithfield High School
Location: North Smithfield
Total # of Students: 519
% Chronically Absent: 7 %
#55 Portsmouth High School
Location: Portsmouth
Total # of Students: 960
% Chronically Absent: 8%
#54 East Greenwich High School
Location: East Greenwich
Total # of Students: 729
% Chronically Absent: 9%
#53 Exeter-West Greenwich High School
Location: Exeter and West Greenwich
Total # of Students: 540
% Chronically Absent: 9%
#52 Chariho Regional High School
Location: Charlestown
Total # of Students: 1,201
% Chronically Absent:
#51 Middletown High School
Location: Middletown
Total # of Students: 685
% Chronically Absent: 10%
#50 North Kingstown Senior High School
Location: North Kingstown
Total # of Students: 1,387
% Chronically Absent:11%
#49 Smithfield Senior High School
Location: Smithfield
Total # of Students: 755
% Chronically Absent: 11 %
#48 Westerly High School
Location: Smithfield
Total # of Students: 917
% Chronically Absent: 11%
#47 Block Island School
Location: New Shoreham
Total # of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 12%
#46 South Kingstown High School
Location: South Kingstown
Total # of Students: 1,073
% Chronically Absent: 12 %
#45 Tiverton High School
Location: Tiverton
Total # of Students: 1,607
% Chronically Absent: 14%
#44 Coventry High School
Location: Coventry
Total # of Students: 1,607
% Chronically Absent: 14 %
#43 Cumberland High School
Location: Cumberland
Total # of Students: 1,337
% Chronically Absent: 14%
#42 Narragansett High School
Location: Narragansett
Total # of Students: 429
% Chronically Absent: 14%
#41 The Greene School
Location: Exeter
Total # of Students: 162
% Chronically Absent: 15%
#40 Highlander Charter Academy
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 16%
#39 Burrillville High School
Location: Burrillville
Total # of Students: 682
% Chronically Absent: 18%
#38 Lincoln Senior High School
Location: Lincoln
Total # of Students: 1,005
% Chronically Absent: 18%
#37 Mt. Hope High School
Location: Bristol
Total # of Students: 990
% Chronically Absent:19%
#36 East Providence High School
Location: East Providence
Total # of Students: 1,502
% Chronically Absent: 19%
#35 Paul Cuffee Charter School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 19%
#34 Times2 Academy
Location: Providence
Total Number of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 19%
#33 Academy for Career Exploration
Location: Providence
Total Number of Students: 168
% Chronically Absent: 19%
#32 Scituate High School
Location: Scituate
Total Number of Students: 469
% Chronically Absent: 19%
#31 J.M. Walsh School
Location: Pawtucket
Total number of students: 192
% Chronically Absent: 20%
#30 Classical High School
Location: Providence
Total Number of Students: 1,119
% Chronically Absent: 21%
#29 Toll Gate High School
Location: Wawick
Total # of Students: 958
% Chronically Absent: 21%
#28 West Warwick Senior High School
Location: West Warwick
Total # of Students: 935
% Chronically Absent: 21%
#27 Davies Career and Techinical Center
Location: Lincoln
Total # of Students: 849
% Chronically Absent: 22%
#26 Pilgrim High School
Location: Warwick
Total # of Students: 991
% Chronically Absent: 22%
#25 Johnston Senior High School
Location: Johnston
Total # of Students: 893
% Chronically Absent: 24%
#24 North Providence High School
Location: North Providence
Total # of Students: 969
% Chronically Absent: 26%
#23 Cranston High School East
Location: Cranston
Total # of Students: 1,583
% Chronically Absent: 27%
#22 Warwick Veterans Memorial High School
Location: Warwick
Total # of Students: 910
% Chronically Absent: 27%
#21 RI Nurses Institute
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 266
% Chronically Absent: 29%
#20 Rogers High School
Location: Newport
Total # of Students: 538
% Chronically Absent: 32%
#19 RI School for the Deaf
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 32%
#18 Tolman Senior High School
Location: Pawtucket
Total # of Students: 1,034
% Chronically Absent: 33%
#17 Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 838
% Chronically Absent: 33%
#16 Cranston High School West
Location: Cranston
Total # of Students:1,526
% Chronically Absent: 33%
#15 Village Green Virtual Charter School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: NA
% Chronically Absent: 39%
#14 E-Cubed Academy
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 349
% Chronically Absent: 39%
#13 Mount Pleasant High School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 898
% Chronically Absent: 39%
#12 Central Falls High School
Location: Central Falls
Total # of Students: 727
% Chronically Absent: 40%
#11 Shea Senior High School
Location: Pawtucket
Total # of Students: 858
% Chronically Absent: 42%
#10 Blackstone Charter Academy
Location: Pawtucket
Total # of Students: 168
% Chronically Absent: 43%
#9 Providence Career and Technical Academy
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 577
% Chronically Absent: 44%
#8 Woonsocket High School
Location: Woonsocket
Total # of Students: 1,579
% Chronically Absent: 47%
#7 Cranston Construction Career Academy
Location: Cranston
Total # of Students:158
% Chronically Absent: 49%
#6 William B. Cooley Senior High School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 617
% Chronically Absent: 50%
#5 Dr. Jorge Alvarez High School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 486
% Chronicallly Absent: 53%
#4 Central High School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 1,112
% Chronically Absent: 55%
#3 Hope High School
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 894
% Chronically Absent: 55%
#2 Sheila Skip Nowell Leadership Academy (II)
Location: Providence
Total # of Students: 81
% Chronically Absent: 87%
#1 Sheila Skip Nowell Leadership Academy (I)
Location: Central Falls
Total # of Students: 73
% of Chronically Absent: 89%
