Here's Something You Don't See Everyday

I consider myself something of a radical moderate politically, so I'm always reading stuff from both sides of the aisle. As I scan Kentucky's blogs, 'bout every day, I always catch Page One Kentucky (on the left) and the Bluegrass Institute (on the right). I can generally count on them to disagree, so I'm not quite sure what to think about their take on yesterday's news.

Has love come to the Commonwealth?

This from Jacob Payne at Page One Kentucky:

New Ed Commish Just Picked: The least embarrassing candidate was picked to head Kentucky schools, it seems. Terry Holliday was just named commissioner.... Here’s hoping he doesn’t throw money around like Jon Draud. And that he does right by Kentucky. Based on everything we’ve heard about him - despite not being a Kentuckian - we just may be in good hands. And he just might be worth that $225K salary.

From Jake, this is high praise, indeed.

Then I saw this...from Dick Innes at the Bluegrass Policy Blog:

Holliday brings some impressive accomplishments to the job...

I talked about Holliday with a newspaper staffer who serves the Iredell-Statesville school district area in North Carolina about a week ago. About the only complaints against Holliday seem to be from some teachers who claim Holliday made them work harder...As a North Carolina educator, he is intimately familiar with value added assessment programs. That is what we needed, but never got, from our now disbanded CATS assessments. As we rework CATS, Holliday’s background could be of inestimable value to that process.

This time, our Kentucky Board of Education might just have got it right. We look forward to meeting Dr. Holliday and watching what he can do for Kentucky.

HONEY! Our Little Scholar is Home with his Report Card !

The folks over at the Bluegrass Institute drew my attention to the fact that Junior's Report Card is out. And there's a bad mark.

B+
B-
3 Cs
and a D+

D+ ! Wait until your mother gets home!

So the Bluegrass Institute's research guy reached out and gave a little tweak to those of us who have noted Kentucky's increasing rank among the states in student achievement in recent years.

The inference is that those of us who engaged in the hoopla, were somehow misleading the public -and we all know how bad that would be. As Austin Powers might say, "Ouch, Baby. Ouch."

The facts are these:

• Kentucky has made progress in recent years relative to the 50 states.
• Three separate 2007 reports showed Kentucky at 34th, 31st and 34th.
• But in-state data is also unequivocal - Kentucky's student achievement progress is not yet sufficient.

Those are the facts. But what is the spin?

Now, Quality Counts is the kind of cobbled together assessment BGI might otherwise criticize, if the results were less to their liking - but true to its mission one supposes - BGI went straight for the lowest score and dismissed the rest.

Now, I may not like it, but that's actually OK with me. Whatever data Kentucky produces, I say, let's see it. But let's not misinterpret the meaning.

As BGI knows whenever the states are ranked in any category, it it teaches us nothing about the strength of a score. Arguably, every state in the union is lacking in student achievement. In fact, the 2007 NAEP student achievement leader, Massachusetts, scored - B for student achievement.

All a rank does is to compare relative standing.

So how does the Quality Counts (subscription required) report card deal with that? Why, for every score Kentucky gets, Quality Counts tells us the the national average score.

Chance for Success: Kentucky = C; Nation = C+

K-12 Achievement: Kentucky = D+; Nation = D+

Stnds, Assesmt & Accountability: Kentucky = B+; Nation = B

Transitions & Alingmt: Kentucky = C; Nation = C

Teaching Prof: Kentucky = B-; Nation = C

School Finance: Kentucky = C; Nation = C+

Now, we're able to compare (if very roughly) Kentucky's relative standing in student achievement. And since we know our student achievement score matches the national average - low as that may be - in terms of state rank, Kentucky falls among those states at the 50th percentile?

Isn't that wonderful news?

So here's my new headline:

Quality Counts Report Shows Kentucky now tied for 25th
in K-12 Student Achievement !!!

BGI applauds the jump from 34th.

But seriously folks...

It is readily apparent that one should not place too much weight on any one study. Better to set up as good a system as one can, and let it work. The trending data over time teaches us much. The important thing is that we are all working to make the schools better - not abandon them.

What I see from the study is some confirmation that our ultimate chances for success aren't on par with our competition (neither are they out of reach) and that less than optimal support for the system probably contributes to that circumstance.

For a more serious assessment of Kentucky's situation check out, "Substantial And Yet Not Sufficient: Kentucky's Effort to Build Proficiency for Each and Every Child," By Susan Weston and Bob Sexton. It was presented at Columbia University's conference, Campaign for Educational Equity, in November.

Bluegrass Institute blames KDE for problem that could have been avoided

Take a peek at yesterday's post by Richard Innes on this year's late release of NCLB results in Kentucky.

He blames KDE for being unprepared for a situation they have known about since 2001; congratulates Fayette County for their aleting the parents they could; and liked the Post Op-Ed, as I did.

We don't fully agree on the proper response to the situation, but the Bluegrass Institute definately scores some points.

Student readiness "near average?!" What does that mean?

PREPAREDNESS FOR HIGH SCHOOL, ACT TESTED

Senate Bill 130, requires all Kentucky high school juniors to take the ACT exam starting in 2008. One of the tests required by the bill, called EXPLORE, measures whether eighth-graders are prepared for high school. The other, called PLAN, shows whether 10th-graders are ready for the ACT, a college entrance exam.

Yesterday, the Kentucky Department of Education released data from these new readiness tests that were given to middle and high school students for the first time in October and eventually will factor into overall state achievement scores under the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System.

How'd we do?

Statewide - below average, again.

Kentucky eighth-graders were nearly as prepared for high school as their peers nationwide, while the state's 10th-graders were not as ready for the ACT college entrance exams as similar students nationwide.

Kentucky received a 14.5 composite score on the EXPLORE tests, compared with a national score of 14.9. The national PLAN composite score was a 17.5, and Kentucky students scored 16.4.

Fayette County's EXPLORE composite was 15.1; the district's PLAN composite was 17.8.

"This is the first time that we have this data," (my colleague and friend) Principal Jock Gum told the Herald-Leader. "It helps us to understand where deficiencies are as far as preparation for high school." Gum said that, unlike CATS, there was little pressure put on students because this is thought of as a diagnostic test.

The press release from KDE said, "...overall school scores are mid-range or higher." That comment prompted a retort from the Bluegrass Institute saying, "...the Kentucky Department of Education has lost no time in trying to spin below average results into “scores that are mid-range or higher.”

This is a definitional argument and a pretty good example of how data can be made to sing a certain song depending on one's orientation.

So in this case, who's correct? Well, they both are - to a point.

Every statistician on the planet understands that the mid-range of human performance is generally somewhere between the 40th and 60th percentiles. Some will describe mid-range as including all scores that are between one standard deviation below, and one standard deviation above the mean. This is a fair description of the EXPLORE and PLAN results, and KDE is not inaccurate in their description. But did they describe the data with a positive spin? You bet.

On the other hand, the scores are, in fact, below average (with the sole exception of 8th grade reading, which is exactly average) and the high school scores trail those of the middle school. Is it fair to say Kentucky's scores are generally below average? Yes, they are.

But let's not reinterpret Webster to say that "mid-range" is the same as "average." Mid-range is a set of scores that surround the mean. An average (the mean) is a single score.

Here are the data, courtesy of the Herald-Leader.

Was Erwin's contract Bought Out in Scottsdale?

Well, they're talking retrospectively and frankly, about Barbara Erwin in Scottsdale, Arizona; looking back on her tenure there as Superintendent from 2000-2004.

Robert Leger is the Editorial Page Editor for the Scottsdale Republic. His article, "Barbara Erwin will always have Scottsdale," is posted on Blogizona, where he reported Erwin's Kentucky problems to the folks in Arizona. Following his article are a handful of thoughtful questions and comments.

But Leger started off asking a question of his own: "I came to Scottsdale well after Erwin had departed," he wrote, "but I've not heard one good word about her. Did anyone in Kentucky do a reference check?"

Bodo7643 asked a very penetrating question. "How could the Kentuckians have missed the fact that our School Board bought out Erwin's contract; -- they were that eager to be rid of her!"

What? How indeed? If that's true it's a "What did the school board know and when did they know it?" kind of question.

Dodie1499 said, "As a newspaper editor, familiar with "typos" I am sure you are amused at what Erwin considers a "typo.""

Then Dodie decries, "the "stone-walling" that some in our community and on our school board have participated in when contacted by those in the education community in Kentucky. Not wanting to get involved is such a cheesey way to get out of addressing matters truthfully even if it is uncomfortable."

Was important information withheld from the Kentucky Board of Education?

Jim McAllister says, "If I remember correctly, Erwin also applied at Shawnee Mission, Kansas a few years ago and was turned down. They must have checked her a bit closer. "

Scottsdale's third choice?...hired...fired?...remembered.

(Thanks to Richard Innes at the Bluegrass Institute for the tip.)

More on the Commish mess from the Bluegrass Policy blog

The Bluegrass Institute followed up on the Commissioner search today. A post by Richard Innes on the Bluegrass Policy Blog nicely ties up the events, chronologically and logically. And, the Kentucky School News and Commentary blog appreciates the Shout out!

Taking another look at Erwin's award claim.

There's no reason to read this (or any) blog if the information isn't trustworthy. That means if I mess up...I've gotta fess up. And, I may have messed up.

As a result, the issue over the veracity of Barbara Erwin's vita has flared up again.

Here's where I may have gone wrong:

I wrote to Amy Vogt, Communications Director for the Texas Association of School Administators, and asked, "Can you confirm That Barbara Erwin was the recipient of AASA's Superintendent of the Year somewhere around 2000?"

Amy directed the question to Darlene Pierce, Director of the National Superintendent of the Year Program. Ms. Pierce wrote back and said, "Yes..." But that's not all she said.

The full statement was, "Yes, in 1999 when she was a superintendent in Texas she was that state's representative in the National Superintendent of the Year program."

Well, that's like, "Yes, we have no bananas." It was a curveball, and I missed it.

So, the "case" is reopened. There is smoke, and there may yet be some flame.

Richard Innes, of the Bluegrass Institute called me last night and we were comparing notes. He told me he spoke to the Executive Director of the Texas Association of School Administrators who said TASA has NEVER designated a Texas Superintendent of the Year. Not in 1998. Not in 1999.

However, adding to the confusion, the TASA web site does make reference to a regional "TASB Superintendent of the Year." For example, in 2006, Superintendents from 16 public school districts were nominated for TASB's "regional" Superintendent of the Year award. It shows up on TASA's web site because the two groups cooperate in their recognition programs. But if Erwin won one of those, it would hardly validate a claim that she was "Texas Superintendent of the Year. It's not the same thing at all. That would be like making it to the Sweet 16...and then claiming a state championship without playing another game.

It's good to keep in mind that we are working from press reports here. What really matters is how Erwin represented herself to the state board of education. If she claimed to be the 1998 TASA Texas Supt of the Year. It seems clear, she was not.

So to recap where we stand on Erwin's claims:

TASB Supt of the Year 1997 - confirmed

TASA Supt of the Year 1998 - unconfirmed - and apparently unconfirmable - The Executive Director says TASA has no such program

TASA Supt of the Year 1999 - unconfirmed - and apparently unconfirmable - The Executive Director says TASA has no such program

TASA representative to the AASA national Supt of the Year 1999 - confirmed - Erwin was nominated but she did not win.

Stay tuned as this develops.

Is KDE serious about helping underperforming schools?

The Bluegrass Policy Blog reports on the Kentucky Board of Education's approach to assisting underperforming schools. If their reporting is accurate...it is troublesome. Just ignore for the moment their attempt to make it an argument for school choice.

The highlights:

A key item on the Kentucky Board of Education’s (KBE) agenda in April was an update on the plans to improve three seriously underperforming schools: Iroquois and Shawnee Middle Schools in Jefferson County and the Holmes Junior/Senior High school in the Covington Independent School District. It was a chance to establish precedents that would make a real difference for kids in some of Kentucky’s very poorest performing schools, but the board dropped the ball.

In February 2007 the KBE voted to remove authority for school governance from the School Based Decision Making Councils (usually referred to as “site base councils”) at these troubled schools.

While this was the very first board meeting following the unprecedented transfer of site base power, initial briefings from the superintendents on plans to improve these schools received only trivial attention. Each superintendent was allowed a deplorably insignificant amount of time – a mere 10 minutes each -- to outline how they planned to turn the three grossly under-performing schools around.

...actual plans got absolutely no review and comment from the Kentucky department of Education’s staff prior to or during the board’s meeting.

Overall, the KBE’s handling of improvement plans for some of Kentucky’s very weakest schools was a “Novice” performance, at best. It exposes attitude problems on the part of several parties and implies a general lack of interest with the board. This seriously mismanaged portion of the meeting establishes a terrible precedent for future cooperation between the board and the districts and may have already poisoned the well beyond recovery.