Silberman defends academic performance

Silberman: State list gives misleading picture

of Fayette schools' progress

This from Jim Warren at H-L:

The Fayette County Public Schools are among 13 Kentucky school districts that have failed to make progress goals on statewide tests for eight or more years, according to a list released by the state department of education Tuesday.

But Superintendent Stu Silberman insists the list presents a misleading picture of academic progress in the county school system...

Silberman argued that being on the list doesn't necessarily give an accurate reflection of the Fayette schools, noting that the district's data show that it has lifted 76 percent of its students into proficiency level on state tests over the past several years.

"Sometimes the various data sources don't actually match up," Silberman said. "The 76 percent increase is huge for us, and it actually ranks eighth highest in the state. We feel very good about where we are heading."

NCLB is a bad, unfair measure that runs counter to the best research on academic measurement - and we shouldn't pay too much attention to it. I think Fayette County has made decent progress in recent years, with a few notable exceptions. Of course, stories coming out of Bryan Station High School these days paint a picture of a school that, if true, could probably prevent FCPS from passing muster under NCLB - ever.