IMPROVING ACHIEVEMENT IN HIGH SCHOOLS AND BEYOND Prepared for the Office of Vocational and Adult Education by The Education Trust 2003 Archived Information

What Do We Know About Student Achievement?

12th Grade Achievement In Math and Science is Up Somewhat

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. High School Achievement: Math and Science Source: NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress.

In Reading, 12th Grade Achievement is Headed Downward

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. HIGH SCHOOL ACHIEVEMENT: READING AND WRITING

After Earlier Progress in Narrowing Gaps, Gaps in the 90’s Largely Unchanged

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress (p. 107) Washington, DC: US Department of Education, August 2000 Gaps Narrow, Then Fairly Flat: NAEP Reading Scores, 17 Year-Olds

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress (p. 108) Washington, DC: US Department of Education, August 2000 Gaps Narrow, Then Hold Steady or Widen: NAEP Math Scores, 17 Year-Olds

Students Make More Growth Grade 4 to 8 than Grade 8 to 12

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Academic Growth Grades 4-8, 8-12

Value Added in High School Declined During the Nineties

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Value Added Declining in High School Math Age Growth Source: NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Value Added Declining in High School Science Age Growth Source: NAEP 1999 Trends in Academic Progress

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Reading: Students Entering Better Prepared, But Leaving Worse Source: NAEP 1996 Trends in Academic Progress

Hormones?

Students in Other Countries Gain far More in High School

TIMSS

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: NCES R, Highlights From TIMSS

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: NCES R, Highlights From TIMSS

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS AT END OF HIGH SCHOOL

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: USDOE, NCES, 1999 NAEP Summary Data Tables Too Few 17 Year-Olds Demonstrate Strong Reading Skills

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: USDOE, NCES, 1999 NAEP Summary Data Tables Too Few 17 Year-Olds Demonstrate Strong Math Skills

And these numbers are for those who make it through High School!

Each Year, One of Every Twenty High School Students Leaves School

Despite Poor Preparation, Most Graduates Will Go Immediately On To College

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. IMMEDIATE COLLEGE-GOING GROWING

Within 2 Years of HS Graduation?

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Most High School Grads Go On To Postsecondary Within 2 Years Source: NELS: 88, Second (1992) and Third (1994) Follow up; in, USDOE, NCES, “Access to Postsecondary Education for the 1992 High School Graduates”, 1998, Table 2.

Unfortunately, About Half of these Students Must Take Remedial Coursework… and Many Do Not Even Make it to the Sophomore Year

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. College Freshmen Not Returning for Sophomore Year Source: Tom Mortensen, Postsecondary Opportunity, No. 89, November 1999

GAINS IN COLLEGE COMPLETION ARE NOT PROPORTIONATE WITH GAINS IN COLLEGE ATTENDANCE

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. College Going vs. Completion of BA or Higher, Whites Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, October Current Population Surveys, , in US DOE, NCES, The Condition of Education 2002, p.166 and

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. College Going vs. Completion of BA or Higher, Blacks Source: US Department of Commerce, Bureau of Census, October Current Population Surveys, , in US DOE, NCES, The Condition of Education 2002, p.166 and

ADD IT ALL UP...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Of Every 100 White Kindergartners: (24 Year-Olds) Source: US Bureau of Census, Current Population Reports, Educational Attainment in the United States; March 2000, Detailed Tables No. 2

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Of Every 100 African American Kindergartners: (24 Year-Olds) Source: US Bureau of Census, Current Population Reports, Educational Attainment in the United States; March 2000, Detailed Tables No. 2

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Of Every 100 Latino Kindergartners: (24 Year-Olds) Source: US Bureau of Census, Current Population Reports, Educational Attainment in the United States; March 2000, Detailed Tables No. 2

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. College Graduates by Age 24 Source: Tom Mortenson, Research Seminar on Public Policy Analysis of Opportunity for Post Secondary, 1997.

WHY?

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. What We Hear Adults Say: n They’re poor; n Their parents don’t care; n They come to schools without breakfast; n Not enough books n Not enough parents...

But if they’re right, then why are poor and minority children performing so high in...

Some schools...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Hambrick Middle School, Aldine, TX n 94% African American and Latino (state = 56%) n 85% low-income (state = 50%) n Has performed in the top fifth of all Texas middle schools in both reading and math in both 7 th and 8 th grades over a 3-year period.

Hambrick Middle School, Aldine, TX Source: New York State Department of Education. Analyses by Student Subgroup of School Performance in English Language Arts and Mathematics for Lincoln School in Mount Vernon City School District. March 7, 2002.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Prince Edward County High, Farmville VA Sources: Virginia Department of Education Web site, (715 students – 55% African American and Latino)

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Norview High School, Norfolk, VA Sources: Virginia Department of Education Web site, (1,560 students – 70% African American and Latino)

And some entire states...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. 4th Grade Math African American Gains Between 1992 and 2000 Source: USDOE, NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Summary Data Tables

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. 4th Grade Math Latino Gains Between 1992 and 2000 Source: USDOE, NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Summary Data Tables

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. North Carolina: Gains in Grade 4 Reading Outpace the Nation, Source: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. What We Hear Students Say: We CAN Learn, But… n some teachers don’t know their subjects n counselors underestimate our potential n principals dismiss concerns n curriculum and expectations are low

SO, WHAT DO WE DO?

Small and personal for both students and teachers will help. Indeed, given the clarity of the research, it is unthinkable NOT to act.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. But real change also requires at least five critical elements: n Get the goals right; n Get all students in a curriculum lined up with those goals; n Make certain that all students are genuinely STRETCHED; n Provide extra instruction for students who arrive behind; n TEACHER QUALITY MATTERS.

Element 1: Goals

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: US bureau of Labor Statistics and Bureau of the Census, Current Population Survey, March 2002 Education Pays: Annual Earnings of yr-olds by Attainment, 2001

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: Andrew Sum, “Literacy in the Labor Force,” NCES, September 1999 It’s Not Just Degrees, But Also Skills That Matter-- for All Groups Prose

Students seem to get all this, but…

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. How Expectations Differ: Plans For Students After High School Source:Metropolitan Life, Survey of the American Teacher 2000: Are We Preparing Students for the 21st Century?, September 2000.

To break through these old attitudes, cannot equivocate. ALL students must graduate from high school ready for postsecondary education.

Element 2: All Students in Curriculum Lined Up With Those Goals

Transcript Study: single biggest predictor of college success is QUALITY AND INTENSITY OF HIGH SCHOOL CURRICULUM Cliff Adelman, Answers in the Tool Box, U.S. Department of Education.

But college prep curriculum has benefits far beyond college.

Students of all sorts will learn more...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: National Assessment of Educational Progress, 1992 Mathematics Trend Assessment, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP 1992 Trends in Academic Progress (p 113). Washington, DC: US Department of Education A Rigorous Math Curriculum Improves Scores For All Students

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: Bottoms, Gene. “Report of the SREB, High Schools That Work 1998 Secondary Teacher Survey”, SREB, 1998, NAEP Scores. Vocational Students Taking High- Level English Courses Score Higher

They will also fail less often...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Challenging Curriculum Results in Lower Failure Rates, Even for Lowest Achievers Source: SREB, “Middle Grades to High School: Mending a Weak Link”. Unpublished Draft, Ninth-grade English performance, by high/low level course, and eighth-grade reading achievement quartiles

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Students of All Abilities Are Generally More Likely to Fail Low- Level Mathematics Courses 9 th -graders earning Ds or Fs by 8 th grade achievement & course assignment Source: Sondra Cooney & Gene Bottoms, “Middle Grades to High School: Mending a Weak Link,” SREB, 2002

Element 3: Working on the Rigor Part

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. What Teenagers Say About School Rigor n Fewer Than 3 in 10 Think Their School is “Very Academically Rigorous” Source: 1998 Annual Survey from Who’s Who Among American High School Students 2000 by The Education Trust, Inc.

n A full one-third of American Algebra 1 courses use textbooks with very little Algebra in them. n Willam Schmidtt

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Students can do no better than the assignments they are given...

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Grade 10 Writing Assignment A frequent theme in literature is the conflict between the individual and society. From literature you have read, select a character who struggled with society. In a well-developed essay, identify the character and explain why this character’s conflict with society is important.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Grade 10 Writing Assignment Write a composition of at least 4 paragraphs on Martin Luther King’s most important contribution to this society. Illustrate your work with a neat cover page. Neatness counts.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. 14 SC High Schools Calibrated: Gaps Between Standards and Assignments Largest in Upper Grades

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Source: Prospects (ABT Associates, 1993), in “Prospects: Final Report on Student Outcomes”, PES, DOE, ‘A’ Work in Poor Schools Would Earn ‘Cs’ in Affluent Schools

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. End of Course Exams Can Help, but teachers need… n Help in designing powerful lessons, units; n Help in developing consistent understanding of what quality work looks like; n Help with more regular assessments (e.g., 9 weeks) of student progress.

Element Four: Provide extra instruction for students who arrive behind

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. When Kids Are Behind, Schools Must Provide More Instruction and Support: n Kentucky provides extra time for struggling students in high-poverty schools n Maryland offers extra dollars for 7th and 8th graders who need more support

And if you don’t live in a smart state? Many schools, districts finding ways to double, even triple, amount of time spent on literacy, math.

Element Five: Teachers Matter Big Time

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Too Many High School Teachers Don’t Have Background in Subject They are Teaching Source: Ingersoll, Richard. American Educational Researcher, “The Problem of Underqualified Teacher in American Secondary Schools”, vol. 28, no. 2, March 1999, p. 29.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. *Teachers who lack a major or minor in the field Source: National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future, What Matters Most: Teaching for America’s Future (p.16) Classes in High Poverty High Schools More Often Taught by Underqualified* Teachers

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Math & Science Classes With a High Percentage of Minority Students Are More Often Taught by Underqualified Teachers Source: Jeannie Oakes. Multiplying Inequalities: The Effects of Race, Social Class, and Tracking on Opportunities to Learn Mathematics and Science (Rand: 1990) 1998 by The Education Trust, Inc.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. High-Poverty Schools Get More Low-Scoring* Teachers *Teachers scoring in the bottom quartile on on SAT/ACT. “High-poverty” schools have 2/3 or more students eligible for reduced-price lunch. Source: Education Week, “Quality Counts 2001,” January 2001.

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Even Within Schools, Often Big Differences

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc. Students in Low Track Classes Are More Often Taught by Underqualified Teachers Source: Ingersoll, The Problem of Underqualified Teachers in American Secondary Schools Educational Researcher, Vol. 28, No 2 (March 1999) pp

Impact?

2000 by The Education Trust, Inc by The Education Trust, Inc.

If we had the courage and creativity to change these patterns?

“By our estimates from Texas schools, having an above average teacher for five years running can completely close the average gap between low- income students and others.” John Kain and Eric Hanushek

Teachers Matter Big Time!

The Office of Vocational and Adult Education