Wednesday, March 16, 2011

In Rhode Island, This Doesn't Get You "Dinged," It Gets You Closed

Linda Nathan:

The moment that students enter the school they hear me say, “High School is not a timed test.” This confronts a national trend of what is important in school (test results) and only what can be counted (test scores). At BAA what matters is finishing your course work and finishing well. What matters goes beyond a score on a bubble sheet. We hold our students to a clearly articulated set of benchmarks, and we ensure enough support along the way. Some students need more time and more support. Even though we are “dinged” by the state for not graduating students in a four-year time period, we insist that some students need more than four years.

2 comments:

Jason said...

Actually, 5-year graduation rates are now included for AYP.

Tom Hoffman said...

Gee, thanks.