Post rankings of DCPS - % of advanced students in reading and math

[Anonymous]

Ranking, in order, of the share of elementary school students in DCPS who reached the highest, or advanced, level of performance on reading and math tests (from The Washington Post):

1. Janney 36%
2. Lafayette 36%
3. Key 34%
4. Mann 33%
5. Murch 25%
6. Hyde 24%
7. Emery 23%
8. Ludlow-Taylor 23%
9. Oyster-Adams Bilingual 22%
10. Eaton 21%


Very interesting. One rarely, if ever, sees Emery or Ludlow mentioned on this forum. Oyster isn't the very top school, regardless of what you read on this site. Top 4 scores are pretty close, but an almost 10% decrease after that but still, overall pretty impressive I would say. They do the same rankings of close-in MD and VA.

[Anonymous]

Among my acquaintances are one teacher and one assistant prinicipal at Emery. Even though you never hear about the school when people are talking about the top schools, I got the impression from passing comments that the school was pretty well organized and they both seemed happy there. (And neither is the deadwood type who is just looking for a comfy job to retire from)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ranking, in order, of the share of elementary school students in DCPS who reached the highest, or advanced, level of performance on reading and math tests (from The Washington Post):

1. Janney 36%
2. Lafayette 36%
3. Key 34%
4. Mann 33%
5. Murch 25%
6. Hyde 24%
7. Emery 23%
8. Ludlow-Taylor 23%
9. Oyster-Adams Bilingual 22%
10. Eaton 21%


Very interesting. One rarely, if ever, sees Emery or Ludlow mentioned on this forum. Oyster isn't the very top school, regardless of what you read on this site. Top 4 scores are pretty close, but an almost 10% decrease after that but still, overall pretty impressive I would say. They do the same rankings of close-in MD and VA.

These are all good schools. Remember that it's only one measure-- many of these schools serve mostly children who are set from birth to succeed with highly educated parents and good financial circumstances. Given that Oyster is 1/2 Spanish speakers, many of whom enter school as English Language Learners, and has the highest % of reduced-cost lunch of the top 10%, comparing peer-to-peer they're actually performing at the top.

[Anonymous]

This has more to do with size than anything else. Janney will have a larger share than Lafayette or Mann because it's so much larger. Not nearly as important as the share of students within the school performing at that level.

[Anonymous]

I though the straight % comparisons were interesting. In this forum people frequently ask about MoCo vs. top DCPS schools. The top schools in MD and Virginia have 70%+ advanced while our top schools have 36%. Even in somewhat homogenous schools like Key and Mann. I think that is interesing. I am not a statistician by any stretch...so is that significant?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I though the straight % comparisons were interesting. In this forum people frequently ask about MoCo vs. top DCPS schools. The top schools in MD and Virginia have 70%+ advanced while our top schools have 36%. Even in somewhat homogenous schools like Key and Mann. I think that is interesing. I am not a statistician by any stretch...so is that significant?

I was wondering the same thing. Also, is the SOL the same in all schools or does DC's differ from MD and VA and they from each other?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This has more to do with size than anything else. Janney will have a larger share than Lafayette or Mann because it's so much larger. Not nearly as important as the share of students within the school performing at that level.

Not really -- since these are percentages, the measurement is standardized for size -- which is important as you noted in your second sentence. (You may have read this a little quickly.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I though the straight % comparisons were interesting. In this forum people frequently ask about MoCo vs. top DCPS schools. The top schools in MD and Virginia have 70%+ advanced while our top schools have 36%. Even in somewhat homogenous schools like Key and Mann. I think that is interesing. I am not a statistician by any stretch...so is that significant?

That interested me too. Every state gets to develop its own SOL.

[Anonymous]

The tests given in each of the three districts are different. It's impossible to compare apples and oranges. A true comparison amongst the different states/District would require that the same exam is given at all of the schools.

[Anonymous]

I think the DC-CAS- the test which is in its 4th (?) year- was based on the Massachusetts standards which are considered the gold standard. So I also wonder if it makes sense to compare Moco, Virginia schools, and DC. The tests are different.

[Anonymous]

Not only are the tests different, but the states/DC choose what score on the test constitutes "proficient" or "advanced." So even if two states used the same test, one could decide that a score of 50 = proficient and a score of 75 = advanced; the other could decide that 60 = proficient and 80 = advanced. NCLB doesn't prevent that. Of course, test designers will probably have an opinion about what score is proficient or advanced, but the point is, this is a standard that DC, MD, and VA have discretion to create.

To its credit, DC moved to a very tough test.

The ten schools listed in the Post article are all good. I'm sure that Janney, Mann, Oyster, etc. can compete with the best of MoCo. The question is, when does everyone else get great schools like those?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ranking, in order, of the share of elementary school students in DCPS who reached the highest, or advanced, level of performance on reading and math tests (from The Washington Post):

1. Janney 36%
2. Lafayette 36%
3. Key 34%
4. Mann 33%
5. Murch 25%
6. Hyde 24%
7. Emery 23%
8. Ludlow-Taylor 23%
9. Oyster-Adams Bilingual 22%
10. Eaton 21%


Very interesting. One rarely, if ever, sees Emery or Ludlow mentioned on this forum. Oyster isn't the very top school, regardless of what you read on this site. Top 4 scores are pretty close, but an almost 10% decrease after that but still, overall pretty impressive I would say. They do the same rankings of close-in MD and VA.

Emery. Isn't that the school attached to a men's homeless shelter??

[Anonymous]

I was not impressed at all by these scores. In fact, they made me think that I have to get my daughter out of DCPS asap. They set low standards and they fail to meet even those.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was not impressed at all by these scores. In fact, they made me think that I have to get my daughter out of DCPS asap. They set low standards and they fail to meet even those.

If you read above, you'll see that DC actually uses a rigorous test. It was adapted from Massachusetts' excellent test. It's true that most DC schools are underperforming, and Rhee is here to fix that. But the schools that made the top 10 can compete with any school in the 'burbs. The tests and standards for "advanced" are different, but a student at Lafayette, Mann, Oyster, Janney, etc. is getting as good an education as the kids in VA and MD's top schools. I'm curious-- based upon your daughter's experience, as opposed to the test scores, do you think that your DCPS school is performing well?

[Anonymous]

http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/search/search.aspx?leftNavId=11238

The Mass school results are searchable. Anyone know a good comparison school district in Mass? Then we would just need to confirm that DC set the advanced standard at a comparable level . . .