Anonymous wrote:

DC also moved from 4/5 on PARCC being passing to 3/4/5. It’s probably a more accurate representation of passing, but they also lowered the bar.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've looked at a handful of schools, and the science scores are across the board lower than ELA or math. I know it's a new test--and I know I've only looked at a few schools, but it does also say that on math and ELA, a 4 is "meets grade-level expectations," but for science, it's a 3.

I wonder if the science test needs to be redesigned to better reflect the curricula schools are teaching.

Overall, the CAPE is a terrible test and we're the only ones who use it, so why it's not fine tuned to our curricula is beyond me. We really need to just start using what either VA or MD use so apples to apples comparisons are possible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t read a huge amount into the DC Cape science results. I am a HS biology teacher whose students take the HS science cape (and previously the DC Science test).

The science test does not contribute to the school’s ratings or teacher ratings. Admin therefore don’t care about it. At my school the science test is given first in the testing window to allow all the kinks with that year’s testing to be worked out. Unlike ELA and math where content is a bit more spiraled the science test is based only on their biology course and is given when there is still 1/4 of the year remains to teach additional content. The blueprint for the test available to me lists 4 major topics and the percent of the test in each (I.e. evolution 25%). That is it. Despite asking both my admin and central office each year I have never once been able to get a report listing all of my students and their overall scores (let alone any breakdown on how they do in different subsections). There are no incentives at the student, teacher or school level to care about the test. As far as I can tell this is the first time the school averages have even been publicly available in any easy to view form and despite being listed on the report care do not contribute to the school score.

I agree with most of this as a middle school teacher. I’ve never gotten scores even though I’ve asked for years. I do think they’re going to get significantly worse, though. The science “curriculum” downtown is trying to roll out is absolutely atrocious. Amplify has gaping holes in the content and blatant mistakes. Someone needs to figure out who approved it and fire them. Even the Amplify spokespeople at trainings have talked about its lack of rigor.

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t read a huge amount into the DC Cape science results. I am a HS biology teacher whose students take the HS science cape (and previously the DC Science test).

The science test does not contribute to the school’s ratings or teacher ratings. Admin therefore don’t care about it. At my school the science test is given first in the testing window to allow all the kinks with that year’s testing to be worked out. Unlike ELA and math where content is a bit more spiraled the science test is based only on their biology course and is given when there is still 1/4 of the year remains to teach additional content. The blueprint for the test available to me lists 4 major topics and the percent of the test in each (I.e. evolution 25%). That is it. Despite asking both my admin and central office each year I have never once been able to get a report listing all of my students and their overall scores (let alone any breakdown on how they do in different subsections). There are no incentives at the student, teacher or school level to care about the test. As far as I can tell this is the first time the school averages have even been publicly available in any easy to view form and despite being listed on the report care do not contribute to the school score.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Charters up for review/renewal this year, with their percentile Accountability Score (excluding adult and alternative)

Capital Village: 7% (this means in the 7th percentile of all DC schools for the grades served)
Girls Global 22%
I Dream n/a
Social Justice 6%
Sojourner Truth 49% middle, 60% high school

Washington Global 96% (WOW)

Appletree n/a
Bridges 4%
Early Childhood PCS n/a
Hope Community 0% elementary, 0% middle
Howard Middle 25%
Bethune 59% elementary, 74% middle

Cap City 25% elementary, 10% middle, 42% high school
Paul 67% middle, 75% high school
IDEA 6%

I guess some charters are on the chopping block?

Washington Global has a National Blue Ribbon award so I am not surprised by the 96%

Anonymous wrote:Charters up for review/renewal this year, with their percentile Accountability Score (excluding adult and alternative)

Capital Village: 7% (this means in the 7th percentile of all DC schools for the grades served)
Girls Global 22%
I Dream n/a
Social Justice 6%
Sojourner Truth 49% middle, 60% high school

Washington Global 96% (WOW)

Appletree n/a
Bridges 4%
Early Childhood PCS n/a
Hope Community 0% elementary, 0% middle
Howard Middle 25%
Bethune 59% elementary, 74% middle

Cap City 25% elementary, 10% middle, 42% high school
Paul 67% middle, 75% high school
IDEA 6%

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Highest:
Barnard
Banneker
Deal
Garrison
Hyde-Addison
JOW
Lafayette
Marie Reed
McKinley Tech
Murch
Ross
SWW
Stoddert
Whittier
DCB
Friendship Ideal Middle
Washington Global
Latin 2nd Middle
YY


Lowest:
Anacostia
Ballou
Cardozo
Dunbar
Eastern
Ketcham
Kramer
Bridges
Capital Village
Friendship Online
Hope Community
IDEA
Rocketship Legacy Prep
Roots
SSMA
Social Justice
Statesmen
SEED
Thurgood Marshall


Most improved:
Bard
Bunker Hill
Cleevland
Drew
Garfield
JOW (a lot!)
Whitlock
Malcolm X
Moten
Phelps
Plummer
SWS
Center City Capitol Hill
Center City Shaw
Stokes EE
Friendship Chamberlain
Friendship Southeast
Bethune
Paul high school


Most decreased:
HD Cooke
Ketcham
Langdon
Leckie
Smothers
Thomas
Tyler
Watkins
Bridges
Cap City lower school
Harmony
KIPP Inspire
KIPP Quest
Rocketship Infinity
Roots-- down 60 points wow
Statesmen
Sojourner Truth
Two Rivers 4th

Link to full list?

Anonymous wrote:Highest:
Barnard
Banneker
Deal
Garrison
Hyde-Addison
JOW
Lafayette
Marie Reed
McKinley Tech
Murch
Ross
SWW
Stoddert
Whittier
DCB
Friendship Ideal Middle
Washington Global
Latin 2nd Middle
YY


Lowest:
Anacostia
Ballou
Cardozo
Dunbar
Eastern
Ketcham
Kramer
Bridges
Capital Village
Friendship Online
Hope Community
IDEA
Rocketship Legacy Prep
Roots
SSMA
Social Justice
Statesmen
SEED
Thurgood Marshall


Most improved:
Bard
Bunker Hill
Cleevland
Drew
Garfield
JOW (a lot!)
Whitlock
Malcolm X
Moten
Phelps
Plummer
SWS
Center City Capitol Hill
Center City Shaw
Stokes EE
Friendship Chamberlain
Friendship Southeast
Bethune
Paul high school


Most decreased:
HD Cooke
Ketcham
Langdon
Leckie
Smothers
Thomas
Tyler
Watkins
Bridges
Cap City lower school
Harmony
KIPP Inspire
KIPP Quest
Rocketship Infinity
Roots-- down 60 points wow
Statesmen
Sojourner Truth
Two Rivers 4th

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/12/05/dc-council-charter-school-training/

The D.C. Council is set to consider a measure that would mandate training for officials who run the city’s more than five dozen charter school networks, the latest fallout from the abrupt closure of a school just days before classes were to start.

Training is a good start but it's not going to stop an abrupt closure before school starts. Council had a hearing on the closure yesterday and the board member from the school that closed said they had training in the spring. They still didn't make the major changes necessary to stay open nor did they prepare for an orderly closure. No one wants to admit that they aren't going to make it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:78% on CAPE math is at least really good. some students at almost every public elementary school have special needs, ESL, and/or learning challenges where you are not ever going to see a 100%. conversely, some students will get 4/5 at almost any school. one of the reasons basis has high scores is it advertises itself in a way that attracts a lot of higher scoring kids.

That's true (re: BASIS) but they also really teach a LOT of science (and math). I just helped my fifth grader study for a test last night and they had to know about valence electrons, which is something I didn't know about until high school.

They also drive out special needs kids. This is a well known phenomenon across the Basis system, and it obviously has an impact on test scores.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe have BASIS run the training?

Basis is a large for-profit network which some people love and some people hate. While no one disputes that they are solvent and get high test scores, I would personally argue that, unless you make every single charter school part of a large network and operate it for-profit (both of which are not-ideal models in my opinion), then you are not comparing apples to apples. Also, the local people who run BASIS are not the people you would bring in to run such a training as they are not really running the schools. It's a top-down cult-like leadership model there with charismatic leaders who may or may not some day be viewed quite poorly.

Anonymous wrote:https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/12/05/dc-council-charter-school-training/

The D.C. Council is set to consider a measure that would mandate training for officials who run the city’s more than five dozen charter school networks, the latest fallout from the abrupt closure of a school just days before classes were to start.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:78% on CAPE math is at least really good. some students at almost every public elementary school have special needs, ESL, and/or learning challenges where you are not ever going to see a 100%. conversely, some students will get 4/5 at almost any school. one of the reasons basis has high scores is it advertises itself in a way that attracts a lot of higher scoring kids.

That's true (re: BASIS) but they also really teach a LOT of science (and math). I just helped my fifth grader study for a test last night and they had to know about valence electrons, which is something I didn't know about until high school.