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Graham June 9, 2013 at 09:32 pm
GIven the proclivity of this school system to manipulate numbers to its benefit (ECONOMIC DRIVER…Read More uber alles, you know) and the fact that it employs no fewer than 20 (twenty) fulltime public relations staff, let's ask a few questions about these glorious numbers.
Are these ON-TIME graduation rates (4 years, 9-12 grades)? Of all the students who enter in 9th grade and continue to live in the county, how may of THOSE graduate within FOUR years? Of those who move here 9-12 grades, how many stay on to graduate on time? Are they counting GEDs in these glorious numbers? What EXACTLY is being counted here???
What are their graduation GRADES? Can they READ? Do MATH? How many go on to any kind of secondary school and what are their demographics? How many COMPLETE secondary school on time (because we know from OTHER studies that even vaunted FCPS "graduates" need way too much remediation in college)?
When you dig a little, things start to sniff a litte. REPORTERS: I encourage you to dig.
I'll be the first to give kudos if all is as it seems.
Graham June 9, 2013 at 09:35 pm
By the way, why is it that the official school board expectations for poor, Black, Latino, ESOL, and…Read More disabled kids are so much lower than for White and Asian kids here? Why is the school board not demanding that the system make sure they ALL succeed at the same levels and rates? Analogy: Johnny, we expect your soccer team to win EVERY game. Shirley, we expect your soccer team to win 80% of your games. That is, in fact, what is expected of our minority populations here.
janet otersen June 10, 2013 at 11:34 pm
Gee, FCPS sure is good at patting themselves on the back aren't they?
In the press release, SB…Read More Chair Moon, leaves out just a few details about these numbers.
1. The graduation gap is not pretty. While we graduate 97% Whites, only 88% of Blacks graduate and 77% Hispanics. Anyone going to mention that?
2. Some high schools have pretty lousy numbers-Annandale seems to be the worst graduating just 68% of Hispanics and 81% of Blacks. 3 out of 10 kids in a sub group not graduating is concerning to me--anyone else? Maybe we shouldn't cram 2300 kids into this high school??? I guess that redistricting charade with Woodson and Falls Church didn't really help.
3. For those kids who get shipped to Siberia--that is our alternative high schools-beware of these graduation numbers. Bryant-47%, Woodson Adult 14%. No typo here----FOURTEEN PERCENT graduated.
While it is nice to be one of the best school districts in the country, let's all remember that has been the case for 30 years now--nothing new. We should be ranked at the top.
Graham-great comments. The remediation rates at NOVA are horrendous. The figures are available on the FCPS website under budget questions.
One has to wonder what a high school diploma even means anymore.
Mozart May 13, 2013 at 05:39 pm
Boundary changes are a fact of life in Fairfax and neighboring counties with county-wide school…Read More systems. They occur regularly in Loudoun and now are starting to take place again in Arlington, too. These changes - including the elimination of the Woodson "attendance island" in the middle of the Robinson district - appear to be sensible and the School Board did a good job of trying to accommodate most of the views expressed by parents during the study. It seems that some Fairfax Station parents will be unhappy, but they simply did not have a strong argument that, with Woodson picking up kids from Fairfax Villa on top of the kids recently moved from Wakefield Forest, the School Board should not take advantage of capacity at Robinson by eliminating the island.
John Wright May 18, 2013 at 06:03 pm
Another example of arbitrary and capricious decision making by the Fairfax County School Board.…Read More Under the guise of addressing crowding issues, the school board moved Fairfax Station students (representing a very small number) out of Woodson, a school that is currently underutilized and projected to remain so - even with the Fairfax Villa kids - into Robinson, a school that is and will remain over capacity. Let's not forget that it was the school board who asked Fairfax Station to be relocated out of Robinson 30 years ago. Fairfax Station hasn't asked for these disruptions.
Also, ironic that the board created a brand new island and transportation issues in another part of the county on the same night that it eliminated the Fairfax Station island.
There's simply no rhyme or reason here, no matter what the school board and staff apologists claim.
Don Joy March 18, 2013 at 01:22 pm
Don Joy March 18, 2013 at 01:27 pm
Don Joy March 18, 2013 at 01:31 pm
From the Heritage blog:
"Where to begin? First of all, there is little that is voluntary about…Read More the millions in dues paid to the NEA every year. The NEA is strongest in states without right to work laws, and if you want to teach in a public school that is under an NEA contract in those jurisdictions (like California and New York), you must pay dues to the NEA. It is the law. There is nothing voluntary about it. Second, that is tax payer money he’s talking about, which is exactly what is so corrupting about public sector unions: the government is lobbying itself for its own expansion.
"And what are “employee rights” and “due process,” you might ask? Well, those are what require New York City to pay 700 union teachers $65 million a year to do nothing. Same thing in Los Angeles, where 165 union teachers collect a total of $10 million a year from tax payers for doing nothing.
"If you have the time, do watch the whole 25 minute address. Chanin recounts the rise of public sector collective bargaining, with a rapid rise in teacher unionization in the late 60s. He talks about all the victories the NEA has won for teachers since then. But ask yourselves, as the NEA has exploded in membership, budget, and power, how have American students fared? What have unions done for their education? Absolutely nothing."
capitol5555 March 6, 2013 at 07:47 pm
Where is the snow? How money did this forecasting error cost the taxpayers?
John Lovaas March 7, 2013 at 12:34 pm
An interesting discussion of what I hope will not become a national trend extending to Fairfax…Read More County. Local school board elections awash in millions of dollars from afar often promoting ideology not resident wishes are not the model we need.
We need local government responsive to the residents. Nowhere is that more true than in Reston where we have no truly local government for one of the largest, and growing, communities in the commonwealth.
Scott March 7, 2013 at 06:37 pm
I'd like to think that Fairfax County doesn't have nearly the scope and magnitude of issues that LA…Read More faces every year. At a minimum, LA's funding problems are more acute and the ham-handed ways that the unions and politicians have behaved related to funding, jobs, and improvements seems to be very different that what we see here.
Photos: Robinson Secondary School 2013 Graduation
Comment Recommend Sherell Williams (Editor)