Schools Expecting Bad Grades From State

By MARILYN BROWN The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jun 21, 2007

TAMPA - This year's school report cards will be terrible, Florida education officials say.

The reason: School grades are being figured differently - they include science scores and math gains for the weakest students - and reverberations from last year's bungled third-grade reading scores.

"We're going to have a whole lot of D and F schools everywhere," Hillsborough Schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia said. "It's an emergency. Believe me, it's an emergency."

In Hillsborough County, half the 25 high schools are likely to receive a D or worse when the grades are issued next week, said Sam Whitten, the district's accountability supervisor. In 2006, three got D's and none F's.

Bad or falling grades translate into less bonus money for school staff, now as much as $2,500 per teacher in Hillsborough; confusion among parents; and a growing distrust of the state's system for educational accountability.

"It is throwing aspersions on the credibility of the test," said Elia, traditionally a strong supporter of the grading system, which is based on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

This year, Elia said, she will release two sets of grades for each school, the state's official grade and another calculated by the district based on last year's more reliable standards. "I want the students and schools to know the work they've done was reflected," she said.

The complex and changing calculations that turn FCAT scores and student gains into school grades have raised questions since the first school report card was issued in 1999.

Last month, the state's Department of Education put this year's report card on hold as it announced that its 2006 third-grade reading scores were inflated because of the way questions were placed on test booklets. Those inflated scores are used to calculate students' academic growth on this year's report card, creating the impression they did not improve as much as they did.

Elia is a member of a statewide committee that met in Tampa last week to try to fix the mess. The group agreed with the state commissioner of education's recommendations for a temporary fix: Exclude the inflated 2006 reading scores in grade three in this year's calculations, and don't penalize schools when their poorest-performing students don't hit improvement standards.

Calculation Factors Out Flawed Scores

The state Board of Education met Tuesday and agreed to exclude the inflated reading scores from this year's grade calculations. However, the board refused to allow a year's reprieve in the penalty for poor-performing students.

In a conference call Wednesday, leaders of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents united in sounding the alarm.

"They're quite concerned and disappointed," said Bill Monford III, the group's chief executive officer. The Board of Education did not respond to growing concerns about calculating grades, he said.

"There is a ripple effect, certainly," he said. "It's a very, very complicated issue. … If the bottom falls out statewide next week when the grades come out, some people will look and say you can't depend on the grades."

Monford said he is confident that problems in the grading system will be addressed by the Board of Education, but said, "For this year, the door's closed."

'Do Not Give Up On The Schools'

He advised parents to realize the grade problem is not at their school.

"It's a statewide issue," he said. "Do not give up on the schools."

Here's what is contributing to the expected decline in this year's school grades:

•Science test scores will be included in school grade calculations for the first time this year. Scores on the test, given in grades five, eight and 11, have been low, with some educators saying the bar has been set too high too soon.

•Until this year, half of the bottom quarter of students had to improve in reading, or a school's score dropped one letter grade. Starting this year, that standard applies to the bottom quarter in math.

•High school grades dropped statewide last year, and no conclusive answer has been given. One suggestion is that students have a higher standard than in other grade levels.

Schools that retain an A grade or improve at least one letter grade get about $100 per student from the state as a reward. How the money is spent is determined by each school, and most goes to staff bonuses.

The board has ignored problems with the FCAT too long, Elia said.

"When you have a problem and you can then affect all the schools in Florida, you just can't close your eyes. The data has been there for years," she said.

The state report card was supposed to be out in mid-June. Now, it will be next week or later. One reason: The state is negotiating with federal officials for leeway in figuring federal report card grades that also hinge on the flawed third-grade reading scores.

When the report card is out and grades are low, the state Board of Education will take note, Elia predicts. "They'll see the data and be shocked."

Reporter Marilyn Brown can be reached at (813) 259-8069 or mbrown@tampatrib.com.