New report: Q-C charter school lagging

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By Sheena Dooley | Friday, December 8, 2006 1:02 AM CST | () comments

Davenport’s only charter school has shown the least amount of progress in improving student achievement when compared to its statewide peers, according to a new report from the Iowa Department of Education.

For the first time since the state passed its charter law almost four years ago, the department has a formal way to track charter school progress, putting it in compliance with state law. The evaluation provides a description of each school, when it opened, its goals and progress toward meeting them.

“It’s a snapshot of where they are, while knowing some of these are very young, while others are much more seasoned,” said Pam Pfitzenmaier, administrator of the pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade division at the state education department.

Members of the state Board of Education will decide whether that format is sufficient Monday during their regular monthly meeting in Des Moines. It will be the first time they have seen an update on the performance of the state’s nine schools, even though they are charged with granting and revoking charters.

If the board approves the report’s format, it will be presented to lawmakers this legislative session. The department has gone three years without reporting results to the board and legislature, although state law calls for annual reports.

Under the requirement, the department must provide an evaluation of a school’s progress, mission statement, attendance and dropout rates, test scores and financial projections, among other things. The proposed report contains all of those, except the schools’ financial information. Also, attendance and dropout rates are districtwide and not schoolwide.

“You have to give anything that is new an opportunity to see what their results are going to be,” said Gene Vincent, board chairman. “One of the things about education is they move slow.”

The Quad-City Times reported last month about the state’s noncompliance with the law, and at the time, Del Hoover, Iowa’s director of charter schools, said the department was working to develop a measuring stick of schools’ performance. But, he said, turnover in his position and varying types of charter schools affected the state’s ability to do so.

Iowa has four charter high schools that work with community colleges to offer students an expanded list of more rigorous course offerings. Two offer elementary students an opportunity to learn in a multi-aged setting with curriculum that is tied together through a common theme.

One offers additional support for ninth- and 12th-graders, while another provides each student in grades 9-12 an Individualized Learning Plan and tougher instruction that is more relevant to them. Davenport’s school, the Lincoln Academy of Integrated Arts, wraps its curriculum around the fine arts to create a hands-on learning experience.

According to the report, Lincoln trailed its peers in its progress toward raising student test scores in reading, math and science. Six schools had sufficient data to determine whether they were on track for meeting the goals they outlined in their charter application. The three others are in their first year or were just approved for charter status this year.

Iowa Central Charter High School in Southeast Webster-Grand School District was the only charter to meet all its goals. Four schools met a handful of their goals but either didn’t have enough data for an assessment or failed to meet others. Lincoln was the sole school to post large declines in student achievement.

In its first year, Lincoln saw the number of students in grades 3-5 post passing scores on state reading tests drop by six percentage points. In math and science, there was a 7 percentage point and 5 percentage point decline, respectively. At the same time, truancies and tardiness increased, while attendance rates dropped.

Jeff Womack, principal at Lincoln, said a change in the school’s student population has made it more difficult to strengthen those areas. Davenport school board members redrew district attendance boundaries, causing an increase in the number of low-income and minority students Lincoln serves. But those went into effect this year, while the state’s report is based on numbers from the 2004-05 and 2005-06 school years.

“It’s not just about going to the integrated arts,” Womack said. “The integrated arts doesn’t get a kid to school on time and doesn’t provide the extra supports that are needed when your demographics are changing.”

Lincoln Academy of the Arts progress report

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in reading will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state reading tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in math will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state math tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in science will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state science tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: School climate will improve, and student engagement will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: Between 2004-05 and 2005-06, the total number of office referrals and the average daily attendance decreased. Truancies and tardiness increased. The rate of suspensions remained constant.

Progress report

Lincoln Academy of the Arts progress report:

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in reading will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state reading tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in math will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state math tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: The percentage of all students proficient in science will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: The percentage of students in grades 3-5 that passed state science tests decreased between 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Goal: School climate will improve, and student engagement will increase by the end of the 2007-08 school year.

Progress to date: Between 2004-05 and 2005-06, the total number of office referrals and the average daily attendance decreased. Truancies and tardiness increased. The rate of suspensions remained constant.

To see the state Department of Education’s report on charter schools, go to www.qctimes.com/pdfs/2006_charter_school_update.pdf.

What’s next

The state Board of Education will review the charter school progress report at a meeting scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday in Des Moines.

Sheena Dooley can be contacted at (563)323-2363 or sdooley@qctimes.com.