School Grades
Thanks to a reader from the prior post about schools
These are schools in the area that are in or around Seminole Heights
School Name School Grade
05
04
03
02
01
00
99
CLEVELAND ELEMENTARY
B
C
B
C
D
C
C
BROWARD ELEMENTARY
C
A
B
B
C
C
C
EDISON ELEMENTARY
F
C
N
HILLSBOROUGH SENIOR HIGH
D
D
C
C
C
C
C
MEMORIAL MIDDLE
C
C
B
C
C
SEMINOLE ELEMENTARY
C
A
C
C
B
C
D
SLIGH MIDDLE
C
C
C
B
C
C
D
FOSTER ELEMENTARY
D
C
C
B
C
C
D
MIDDLETON HIGH
D
D
N
ORANGE GROVE MIDDLE MAGNET
A
A
A
A
C
A
C
So what are we going to do about our schools to mkae them better?
4 comments:
This is why I hate school ratings, particularly when they rely on a single test. Did you know Newsweek Magazine rated Hillsborough High as one of the top ten in the nation in 2004, the same year it earned a D rating? The D rating is based on the FCAT, the top ten rating based on the percentage of students who take IB or AP classes and pass their much more stringent exams. That tells me Hillsborough does a great job with motivated students who are supported in taking challenging classes. With other students, perhaps lower income or less proficient in English, they don't do as well. I've never darkened the door of any of these schools, but I fear that some fine schools are being smeared with a poor rating that doesn't really reflect the quality education a child can get there. Other schools are resting on laurels that are probably more of a matter of the quality of the students' home environment than anything the school does.
I can see PortTampa's point, but to look at those scores, I guess I see why people say what they do ...
Well said port tampa. The school rating system is flawed in so many ways that I don't think it should be the only criteria used to judge a school's quality. It is my understanding that the ratings are actually based on the improvement of FCAT scores from year to year. This means that if an "F" school increases its rating every year until they are an "A" school, their rating will most likely decline the next year because the test scores can only get so much better. If you look at the ratings posted,it this seems to be the case with a lot of them. On the other hand, a school in a white upper-class neighborhood (see Westchase Elementary) that started out with an "A" only has to show minimal improvement from year to year to maintain that rating. One of the ways they have accomplished this is to jerimander the districts to keep out the riff-raff. Read the Times article HERE.
This is all tied to the (Jeb!) Bush administrations desire for a voucher program that will ensure the continued decline of schools in lower income neighborhoods. The answer to the question "So what are we going to do about our schools to make them better?" is simple. Vote.
School board elections are coming up. Good questions to ask our candidates.
However what are we as a Seminole Heights community doing? What relationships do we have with the schools? We have been advocating many things to local government about our residential and business areas. What have we advocated about for our neighborhood schools? How do we support our neighborhood schools and students?
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