SC schools given “D” for student achievement
SC schools given “D” for student achievement
Weary parents in South Carolina were given more bad news about their public schools this week. Education Week, a national school watchdog, issued its annual “Quality Counts” report card on which South Carolina earned a “D” for student achievement.
Public schools in the state scored a grade of “C” for school finance design and students’ chances for success. A “C” was also given for the transition of graduates to jobs and higher education, an important real-world indicator of school success.
Officials from the State Department of Education were quick to defend the results, noting that South Carolina received high ranks for school standards. The national report also praised South Carolina for its treatment of classroom teachers. The state earned an “A” for teacher pay, incentives, and support programs.
Dr. Jim Rex, the State Superintendent of Education described the report as “highly regarded” but indicated frustration with the fact that in terms of student performance “we seemed to have reached a plateau.” Over all the state received an average grade of “B-“ across all measures. The Education Week report is just the latest in a series of studies that have drawn attention to shortcomings in South Carolina’s $8.4 billion a year public schools.
In 2009, SAT scores dropped for the third year in a row, as did the number of students passing the Exit Exam and the Advanced Placement tests. South Carolina was ranked 50th in high school “promoting power” by the Southern Regional Education Board. That study indicates that half of South Carolina’s public high schools are now categorized as “dropout factories,” where graduation rates remain below 50 percent. A third report estimated that the on-time graduation rate is just 40 percent at the public high schools serving South Carolina’s lowest income communities.
Policy researchers and education activists in South Carolina were quick to express their frustration with the “Quality Counts” study results.
“We hear a lot about budget problems and high standards, but that is a distraction,” said Randy Page, President of South Carolinians for Responsible Government, an education advocacy organization in Columbia. “Last school year public schools spent an average $12,258 per student. If that much money cannot produce a world class education then there is a huge problem with the system itself.”
Source: South Carolinians for Responsible Government, Columbia SC
Related posts:
- Letter to editor: South Carolina lowers standards to make student test scores “rise”
- South Carolina’s public schools ranks 48th in high school graduation rate
- Get accurate student uniform chart here for Beaufort County’s public schools
- SC Education Oversight Committee says our schools are failing us because our leaders are unwilling to face the truth and make hard decisions
- Beaufort County schools begin 2009-2010 session today; complete list of schools here
