Do schools care about failed SOLs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Teacher here. I agree. The majority of fails are ESL students and LD students. I think it is ridiculous ESL kids even have to take it. There are kids not labeled ESL or LD but there are not a lot. Some of them are also former ELs.

I'm not a teacher but I agree also. Also, I believe that the standards are quite low. If a kid with with well-educated and highly-motivated parents fails an SOL, something is seriously wrong, and sadly it probably falls on the parent to figure out what it is. We need to be realistic about what schools and teachers can realistically do. How well does your child read, OP? Lots of kids are bad at it right now because of the impacts of balanced literacy and the growing pains of moving away from it.

No, the SOLs are not low. Every so often they raise them in response to parents' complaints that they are too easy and then in another few years, parents complain they are too hard and they lower them. Although there was some softening during the pandemic, we are currently in a raised cycle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

NP and a teacher. I agree with the PPs who say this doesn't happen to "lots" of kids outside of the three categories listed above. If/when it does, it's usually due to an undiagnosed disability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Teacher here. I agree. The majority of fails are ESL students and LD students. I think it is ridiculous ESL kids even have to take it. There are kids not labeled ESL or LD but there are not a lot. Some of them are also former ELs.

I'm not a teacher but I agree also. Also, I believe that the standards are quite low. If a kid with with well-educated and highly-motivated parents fails an SOL, something is seriously wrong, and sadly it probably falls on the parent to figure out what it is. We need to be realistic about what schools and teachers can realistically do. How well does your child read, OP? Lots of kids are bad at it right now because of the impacts of balanced literacy and the growing pains of moving away from it.

My Gen Ed with some IEP support child failed the 8th grade reading SOL. Their reading SOL scores had been borderline passing for several years. I had asked the IEP team to work with my student and to let me know if the issue was actual reading comprehension or test taking skills. Because my child had passed, they did nothing. When my child failed, they were given an opportunity to retest (they failed by 1 point) and their teacher was going to work with them 1 on 1 to help them. I would have declined the retake, but finally, someone was going to help my child who was going to need to pass HS SOLs, so I agreed. With one remedial session and a few practice questions, my child's score improved 49 points. So, yes, the school cares if they fail an SOL, but not one second before.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Teacher here. I agree. The majority of fails are ESL students and LD students. I think it is ridiculous ESL kids even have to take it. There are kids not labeled ESL or LD but there are not a lot. Some of them are also former ELs.

I'm not a teacher but I agree also. Also, I believe that the standards are quite low. If a kid with with well-educated and highly-motivated parents fails an SOL, something is seriously wrong, and sadly it probably falls on the parent to figure out what it is. We need to be realistic about what schools and teachers can realistically do. How well does your child read, OP? Lots of kids are bad at it right now because of the impacts of balanced literacy and the growing pains of moving away from it.

My Gen Ed with some IEP support child failed the 8th grade reading SOL. Their reading SOL scores had been borderline passing for several years. I had asked the IEP team to work with my student and to let me know if the issue was actual reading comprehension or test taking skills. Because my child had passed, they did nothing. When my child failed, they were given an opportunity to retest (they failed by 1 point) and their teacher was going to work with them 1 on 1 to help them. I would have declined the retake, but finally, someone was going to help my child who was going to need to pass HS SOLs, so I agreed. With one remedial session and a few practice questions, my child's score improved 49 points. So, yes, the school cares if they fail an SOL, but not one second before.

Your child still fits into the category of "special education" if they have an IEP, even if they are in a general education classroom.

[Anonymous]

There is a lot of pressure on teachers for kids to pass and the school admin care very much. So much testing and review for testing and data meetings…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

[Anonymous]

I can discuss high school math and there isn’t much of a focus anymore. They only need to pass one at the HS level. This means occasionally there will be a senior who is still struggling to pass the Algebra 1 SOL and then will get intensive remediation (test taking strategies on how to answer questions using Desmos tricks) and unlimited retakes. This will satisfy the requirement for graduation if they get the minimum score. They don’t need to take an SOL in Geometry or other math classes. I’m sure other subjects have similar things going on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a lot of pressure on teachers for kids to pass and the school admin care very much. So much testing and review for testing and data meetings…

I think it varies from school to school. I’ve taught ES for 30+ years and have never really felt a lot of pressure. The grade level teams I’ve been on have not done a lot of review before testing. We are usually just teaching up until, and even after the tests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Something like 30% of children fail the math SOL every year per VDOE - are 30% of children learning disabled?
Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

Something like 30% of children fail the math SOL every year per VDOE - are 30% of children learning disabled?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

Says a mom or teacher in McLean or Great Falls.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

Something like 30% of children fail the math SOL every year per VDOE - are 30% of children learning disabled?

That also includes ESOL students. I’ve had coworkers that have classrooms almost completely full with ESOL students, and 60% of them fail the SOL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

No, not really. Not lots.

Wow, what a jerk.

Few students without learning difficulties fail SOLs in elementary school. I’m not sure about the secondary level.

Something like 30% of children fail the math SOL every year per VDOE - are 30% of children learning disabled?

Math is completely different. A lot of kids math because the math sequence is horrendous. It doesn’t give kids time to properly learn steps and foundational skills because it’s rushing them up to calculus for some god forsaken reason. Way too many parents also pit their kids in the wrong math because they want them to hit pre-Calc in high school despite the fact they don’t have foundational algebraic skills. That’s why the math fail rate is so high.

Most of the other fail scores are attributable to the original three reasons I stated on page one: chronic truancy, learning disabilities, ESL, or, a combo of 2 or 3 of those since they tend to go hand in hand. I am a high school teacher btw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they care. But wr can’t take the test for them so “helping them improve” can have varying outcomes. There are 3 main groups of students who consistently fail their SOL:

1. Chronically truant. What are we supposed to do? You don’t come to school so you don’t learn the material. We can’t remediate when you don’t have any knowledge of the content. This group is the hardest to help “improve.”

2. ESL. They will take it twice, fail, and then take Workkeys instead which is more appropriate for their skills and gets them the verified credit.

3. Sped. They can pass with a lower score than the benchmark. Can be tough but doable with remediation.

What about the regular child who does not fit into any of those categories? Lots of children without learning disabilities still fail SOLs. Even in high SES schools with well educated and highly motivated parents..

NP and a teacher. I agree with the PPs who say this doesn't happen to "lots" of kids outside of the three categories listed above. If/when it does, it's usually due to an undiagnosed disability.

Or undiagnosed/untreated ADHD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it makes the school look bad if there are too many fails.

They care if they have low aggregate scores and are at risk of state take over. It gets ugly quick. Our ES was at risk of this a few years ago in FCPS.

SOLs of an individual kid? The district does not care.