Looking More Closely At 'Warning' Status For EGHS, Meadowbrook

When school Supt. Victor Mercurio spoke to the School Committee last week about the state Department of Education's 2013 school classifications, there was really only one thing to talk about: how two EG schools that earned "commended" last year, had dropped to "warning" this year.

Of East Greenwich's six public schools, Eldredge and Hanaford were classified "leading," Cole Middle School and Frenchtown were classified "typical," and EGHS and Meadowbrook Farm were classified "warning." For 2011-12, EGHS, Cole, and Meadowbrook were "commended," Hanaford was "leading," and Frenchtown and Eldredge were "typical."

Each school was measured by these criteria:

• How many students attained proficiency or better? 30 points

• Is the school approaching its 2017 targets? 10 points

• Is the school serving all students, including minorities, English learners, those with disabilities, and the economically disadvantaged? 30 points

• How many students have attained distinction? 5 points

• Are all students making progress? 25 points for elementary and middle schools only

• Is the school reaching its graduation-rate goals? 20 points for high schools only

• Is the school improving annually? 5 points for high schools only

As Supt. Mercurio explained, the high school got into trouble from that third criteria – is the school serving all students? It got 12 out of a total 30 points. Last year, it got 24 points. 

Otherwise, EGHS scores were generally good:

19.5 (out of 30) for the number of students who've attained proficiency or better;

7 (out of 10) on reaching '17 targets;

4 (out of 5) in the number of students attaining distinction;

20 (out of 20) on reaching graduation rate goals; and 

4.5 (out of 5) on annual school improvement 

But overall EGHS went from a score of 77 in 2011-12 to 67 this year.

For Meadowbrook, the drop was more dramatic. It dropped to 53.3 total points overall from 75.31 in 2011-12:

19.5 (out of 30) for the number of students who've attained proficiency or better;

2 (out of 10) on reaching '17 targets;

21 (out of 30) in serving all students;

3.5 (out of 5) in the number of students attaining distinction; and

7.5 (out of 25) in "are all students making progress?" (also known as "growth")

Clearly, it was Meadowbrook's 7.5 out of 25 that was the biggest, although by no means the only, issue. According to RIDE spokesman Elliot Krieger, that score reflects the growth of each individual child at that school. But it gets a little tricky because only third graders take the NECAP test the classification is based on. When they take the test as third graders, those scores are compared to their scores as fourth graders. In other words, the low score this year was due to test results from fourth graders. 

Now, if your students have high NECAP test results as third graders, it's possible there isn't far for them to go. But, Krieger said, it's not quite that simple. Each child's score is tracked with all the other children across the state who score similarly. So, the following year, when new results come around, those children's scores are again compared. It appears that fourth graders who were in third grade at Meadowbrook in 2011-12 did not score as well in 2012-13 as their third-grade score peers around the state. Are you following? 

At the high school, it appears the scores of children with IEPs were the primary reason for the larger "gap." The fact is, EGHS had only one English learner student this past year. That student was grouped with the IEP students in the scoring. 

What next? 

Mercurio said several building principals had been to RIDE to learn more about the classifications, and he admitted he was still working to understand the data. He said EG staff would continue to meet with RIDE officials "to understand finer details of the data" and an action plan would be presented at the School Committee meeting Aug. 13.

If you are interested in investigating further, here are some links: 

http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/school/east-greenwich-high-school/accountability/accountability-summary/2012/1

http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/school/meadowbrook-farms-school/accountability/accountability-summary/2012/1

http://infoworks.ride.ri.gov/files/reports/advanced-report-guide-accountability.pdf