Reply to Myth: low income students do better in schools with <25% FARMs rate.

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Reply to "Myth: low income students do better in schools with <25% FARMs rate. "

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[quote=Anonymous]The study that MCPS seems to be clinging to that showed low income kids do better in schools with less than 25% FARMS was done across school systems where poorer schools had less resources. This study had a number of flaws in the methodology but even if you set those aside the study really only showed the correlation against funding ,not demographics of peers. Nation wide less is spent per student in low income schools than neighboring high income schools. When people speak at the national level about educational opportunities, this is what they are talking about and this is an inequity.

MCPS does not have a funding inequity. Within MCPS, a system that is uniform and able to devote more resources to lower income schools their own data does not show that low income kids do better in wealthier schools. It is all over the map and there is no clear pattern -unless you delete multiple data points that do not fit your desire. This is concerning to me because once again we have MCPS ignoring or cherry picking its own data and making bad decisions. While no one knows how far MCPS will go with its demographic balancing initiative this seems to be the only thing they are talking about in terms of improving student outcomes despite the data showing it does not do this.

There are other schools in the nation that are solving this problem and other studies that show different approaches.

This is a good article with references to more reputable sources and studies beyond the the flawed one that MCPS loves and the grad students that looked at MCPS data -https://www.chalkbeat.org/posts/us/2018/09/26/list-studies-test-scores-poverty-school-income/. At the county level the type of financial grants described in the article could have a significant impact on student outcomes. David Yang may be an outlier but the data backs up his position on UBI.

MCPS could look at the mid sized schools in Texas with high concentrations of poverty AND test scores exceeding those of the wealthy white state/national average. These schools include passionate leadership, community driven engagement, extensive wrap around services , extended school day, embrace and integrate community cultural influences
and produce results. They're not just moving the deck chairs around the Titanic.

The achievement gap is a solvable problem. It takes money and competent school officials. Montgomery County and even MCPS has the money if they would stop wasting it. Competent school officials is the missing ingredient. So once again the BOE is trotting off in the wrong direction with a bunch of foolish sycophants cheering them on.  [/quote]

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