Louisiana Public Schools

Do as I said … Not as I say: Common Core and PARCC

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

Word on the street is that the Governor is supporting efforts to stop the use of PARCC tests next year, and he might even show up at the House Education Committee to testify.

PARCC, which stands for the Partnership for Assessment Readiness for College and Careers, has worked for 4 years with states, school districts, principals, and teachers to develop tests aligned to the Common Core State Standards. If Louisiana abandons the PARCC tests now, it will cost the state millions of dollars and many years to develop an inferior test that would not allow us to compare the performance of our schools and students to the rest of the nation.

The Facts

— Louisiana adopted the Common Core Standards in 2010, with the Governor’s support.
— The PARCC tests were developed according to the agreement the Governor signed in June 2010, expressly recognizing the states were developing the test and that is was not a federal test.
— PARCC was developed by a consortium of 19 states and the District of Columbia. It is not a federal, one-size-fits-all test. The Governor would never have agreed to a “federal test” in 2010.

Funny … the Governor has a long record of supporting Common Core and PARCC tests.

November 2009: In a press release touting Louisiana’s decision to apply for Race to the Top Funding, which included signing on to the Common Core State Standards, the Governor got it right, saying:

“Our children have only one chance to grow and get the skills they need to succeed. We must take advantage of every opportunity we have to strengthen our education system and provide more opportunities for Louisiana children.”

Continue reading →

Proposed Accountability Plan for Voucher Schools Released

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

Superintendent White has issued his proposed standards 
for Academic Accountability for Voucher Schools.

BESE will meet tomorrow (Tuesday, July 24th) at 11:00 am to vote on Superintendent White’s Proposed Policy for the Voucher Program.

Educate Now! supports these policy recommendations and strongly urges BESE to approve them.

Quick Summary

Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year:

  • Schools with fewer than 10 voucher students in a tested grade and with fewer than a total of 40 voucher students enrolled in tested grades (3-11) will have their test results reported by grade (if more than 10 students) and by program (all students tested if more than 10 total). Continue reading →

A Tale of Two Schools: Voucher Performance

Posted on by Leslie Jacobs

Performance is uneven in traditional public schools. Performance is uneven in charter schools. It should come as no surprise that performance is uneven in nonpublic schools.

Let’s look at two schools participating in the Orleans voucher pilot: St. Leo the Great and Upperroom Bible Church Academy.

  • Last year, St. Leo had 136 voucher students; Upperroom Bible had 74.
  • Both began participation 4 years ago, beginning with students in grades K-3.
  • Both had more than 60% of their total student population receiving vouchers.
  • Students enrolling in either school from grades 1 and up came from a failing school.
  • Students at both schools took the same state tests – iLeap and LEAP.

But the similarities stop here. Continue reading →