Schools need to discover the secrets to success
At first glance, schools in Huntington Beach appear to be doing a
great job of educating students.
Compared to all of the thousands of schools in California, they
are.
When the Academic Performance Index base report was released a
couple weeks ago, nearly all schools in the Ocean View, Huntington
Beach City and Huntington Beach Union High school districts ranked
very high when compared to schools statewide.
Of the 29 schools in Huntington Beach, 23 were ranked in the top
30% statewide.
For this, educators are to be commended.
But it’s not really fair to say Surf City is doing great. Look at
the schools in Compton. That’s not a level playing field. Which is
why the Academic Performance Index offers both a statewide ranking
and one that compares a school to 100 schools with similar
characteristics, such as student ethnicity, socioeconomic factors and
the number of English language learners.
And that is where many Surf City schools came up short.
Schools are given a numerical rank between 1 and 10, with 1 being the worst and 10 being the best.
Many schools dropped from the top 30% of schools statewide -- from
8s, 9s and 10s -- to the bottom rungs -- earning 2s and 3s.
In the city school district -- Eader, Hawes, Ketler, Moffett and
Smith elementaries -- schools plummeted when compared to like
schools, as did Dwyer and Sowers middle schools.
In the Ocean View district, Hope View Elementary made the deepest
plunge.
The high school district was split, however, with Huntington Beach
and Ocean View falling off, but Edison and Marina high schools
actually gaining ground.
Those schools are to be congratulated. Perhaps the principals at
Edison and Marina should share their secrets with their fellow
principals.
All schools that experienced a drop in ranking should be checking
out the competition. It is not enough to score better than schools
with fewer advantages. Look up those similar schools that received a
rank of 10 when compared to Huntington Beach schools, and ask them
their secrets to success.
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