Published: Tuesday, November 16, 2010, 5:30 AM ??? Updated: Tuesday, November 16, 2010, 6:50 AM
Elementary school students in Mobile County outperform their counterparts in Baldwin County on standardized tests, while in middle school and high school, Baldwin students do better, according to a recent study and a Press-Register analysis.
The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama compared spring 2010 scores on the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test among the state’s 10 largest school systems. The Press-Register, for its analysis, studied passage rates on the Alabama High School Graduation Exam.
Students in both Mobile and Baldwin exceeded state averages on the reading and math tests. In fact, the two had some of Alabama’s highest-scoring elementary and middle school students, according to PARCA, which examined the number of students ranking in the top tier on the math and reading tests, not just how many passed.
Mobile County placed well above state averages in elementary grades three through five, but by middle school, it was “just competitive — sometimes a little above, sometimes a little below” the state average, said Jim Williams, executive director for PARCA, which is based at Samford University in Birmingham.
In fact, when PARCA averaged the scores for both elementary and middle schools, it found that Baldwin was No. 1 in the state, and Mobile County was No. 4. In between were Madison County and Hoover, at 2 and 3, respectively.
By high school, Mobile County’s scores dropped off, with fewer students reaching the highest tier on the Alabama High School Graduation Exam, compared to state averages. The system was No. 8 on the Top 10 list, above only Jefferson County and Tuscaloosa County.
Baldwin County high schools were No. 4, behind Hoover, Huntsville and Shelby County.
More juniors in Mobile and Baldwin counties pass the reading and math portions of the graduation exam than the state averages.
“I’m very proud of our system,” said Mobile County schools Deputy Superintendent Martha Peek. “We have a firm foundation in elementary school. What we want to continue to do is look for best practices and programs that we can put in the middle and high schools. What we are seeing in Mobile is simply a small splice of what is happening nationwide.”
Although Baldwin County had the highest-performing elementary and middle school students among the 10 large systems, its black students scored below the state average. That didn’t happen in Mobile County, which has more black students.
Chickasaw School of Mathematics and Science; Clark-Shaw School of Mathematics, Science and Technology; Collier Elementary; George Hall Elementary; Phillips Preparatory; Council Traditional; E.R. Dickson Elementary; Griggs Elementary; Dauphin Island Elementary; O’Rourke Elementary; Hutchens Elementary; Holloway Elementary; McDavid-Jones Elementary; Old Shell Road Magnet and Mary B. Austin Elementary.
These Baldwin County elementary and middle schools, in order, had the highest-performing students:
Fairhope Intermediate; Spanish Fort Middle; Gulf Shores Elementary; Rockwell Elementary; Fairhope Middle; Fairhope Elementary and Elberta Middle:
It’s significant that Mobile County is doing well in this regard, Williams said, given that the system has a higher percentage of students living in poverty: 66 percent, compared to 38 percent in Baldwin, and 53 percent statewide.
Mobile County in particular has done a good job reducing the achievement gaps that exist between white and black students, and students living in poverty and those who are not, Williams said.
Alabama uses passage rates on the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test to rate elementary and middle schools and the graduation exam to rate high schools annually in accordance with the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Students are grouped into four tiers, based on their scores. Level 3 is considered grade-level. Level 4 is the highest.
This year, 75 percent of Alabama’s 1,375 schools met state standards, based on the spring 2010 scores.
Williams said that Alabama’s standards are low in relation to other states, so he used Level 4 scores only in his study.
Dianne McWain is principal of the Clark-Shaw School of Mathematics, Science and Technology, a magnet middle school in northwest Mobile that achieved some of the highest scores locally. Clark-Shaw accepts students every year in a lottery.
At Clark-Shaw, students take high school level courses, even if they arrived from their previous school performing below grade level.
“I have fabulous teachers who tutor for free and do whatever they can do to make sure those kids are successful,” McWain said. “We strive to be sure that we’re reaching higher-performing students as well as struggling students. We don’t have an achievement gap at Clark.”
Daphne High School students are doing the best on the graduation exam in the Mobile area, followed by Fairhope and Spanish Fort. LeFlore High School in Mobile’s Toulminville community has the highest passage rates among juniors in Mobile County.
Four Mobile County schools — Williamson, Blount, Citronelle and Bryant — recorded passage rates below the state averages.
Daphne Principal Meredith Horton said that students who have failed a portion of the test are automatically enrolled in extra tutoring during a mini-period, known as Parthenon Time, which has been added to the school day. When they pass the test, they can take an enrichment class — ranging from fishing or taxidermy to video gaming or ultimate Frisbee.
Students want to pass the graduation test so they can take the fun class, she said.
“If you make your school a place that students want to come to every day, that changes their whole attitude,” Horton said. “We make our school a welcoming place that is comfortable for students and inspiring for kids. We promote attendance, academic success and school pride.”
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