Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, August 9, 1995 TAG: 9508090050
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Harris put principals on notice Tuesday that they must make sure that students do better academically, attend school more regularly and graduate at a higher rate.
Roanoke has problems in these areas that must be addressed, he said, and each school will be monitored on its progress.
"You will be held accountable," he told the principals at the school system's annual summer leadership conference.
"It is easy to make excuses for lack of student performance. But as professional educators, we must strive to find suitable materials, strategies and techniques that will help our students meet their goals."
Harris outlined an ambitious three-year plan for improving test scores and attendance, saying that poor attendance leads to academic failure and dropouts.
He wants the number of students scoring above the 50th percentile on standardized tests to increase 4 percent a year for the next three years. He has established a similar goal for the number of sixth-graders who pass all three parts of the state Literacy Passport Test.
The number of students who miss 10 days or more a year should be reduced 10 percent a year over the next three years, he said, and the dropout rate, now 5 percent, ought to fall 1 percentage point a year over the three years.
And 90 percent of the students who enter the ninth grade should graduate if they remain in the city school system, he said.
Harris also told the principals that they will be responsible for ensuring that at least 50 percent of their teachers participate in training that focuses on the relationship between teacher expectations and student achievement.
The same goals have been established for all schools, but some, such as those for the passport test and graduation rate, won't apply to every school.
To be eligible for the $5,000 incentive, a school must reach the goal in every category that is applicable to it.
Harris said he has set aside money for the first year of rewards, but he couldn't make any promises for later.
The city has 29 schools - 21 elementary, six middle and two high schools. If all schools met the goals, the cost would be $145,000.
Harris said the following statistics show a need for improvement:
The number of sixth-graders passing the passport test declined this year to 59.4 percent, the lowest since 1992.
Black students score 20 to 30 points lower than white students on standardized tests for reading and math at grades four, eight and 11.
Thirty-three percent of the grades assigned to high school students at the end of the past school year were D, F or X/U (failing due to attendance). Forty percent of all children were absent more than 10 days during the past year.
Only 10 of 133 school systems in Virginia had a worse attendance record than Roanoke in the latest state report. Thirty-five elementary children, 105 middle school students and 315 high school students missed 50 or more days during the past year.
Harris challenged the principals to provide leadership in boosting student academic achievement and attendance and lowering the dropout rate.
"Too many of our profiles are flat. I know that we are better than our performance profiles indicate," he said.
As part of a long-term effort to upgrade academic achievement, Harris said, the city will establish preschool programs by 1997 for disadvantaged 3-year-old children at all elementary schools with programs for 4-year-olds.
The school system also will establish preschool programs for disadvantaged 4-year-olds this year at three elementary schools that do not qualify for federal funds for them: Fishburn Park, Monterey and Wasena.
School Board Chairman Nelson Harris said the superintendent is "right on target" in focusing on test scores and attendance. He said he appreciates Wayne Harris' willingness to air the problems publicly and focus attention on them.
"That is the way to ensure that they are dealt with," Nelson Harris said. The reward for schools that meet the goals would be "money well spent," he said.
School Board member Melinda Payne said she is pleased that the superintendent is focusing on the students: keeping them in school and helping them do better on standardized tests. "These are things that we need to take a good look at and see if we can do better," Payne said.
by CNB