Each year John White puts out a press release claiming great success in Louisiana student performance on AP tests over the previous year. The state even pays the fee for students to take the AP tests and gives schools extra points on their performance scores based on students taking AP courses. So each year there is an automatic increase in students taking AP courses. The only problem is that these courses are pretty much worthless unless the student scores at a level of 3 or better. Students who do not score at this level or higher do not get college credit for the course. The chart from the College Board on the state rankings on the latest results shows that Louisiana ranks second to last in the nation in students scoring at level 3 or higher! (Click on the figure to magnify it)
Juking the stats
Press releases from the LDOE about alleged success on AP tests is just one other example of "juking the stats". That's an expression reporters have used to point out how some school reformers often try to rig the data or report data in a way that presents a false picture of the real achievement of school reform.
Juking the stats also includes hiding the true passing scores on state tests (LEAP and EOC tests) by reporting only scale scores that look pretty good while the students statewide are averaging only a little above 40% on the percentage of questions the students answered correctly.
Another way of juking the stats is to pressure school counselors to register almost all graduates of a school as accepted applicants to college. Here's the thing: Some colleges have entrance requirements that would exclude many of our high school graduates because they are not truly qualified to succeed in college. But there are many fly-by-night colleges thet will accept almost anyone. So just getting kids accepted to college is extremely easy if you fill out the correct forms. But none if this means that all these "accepted" students will actually attend college. It is very sad that many of our students who are given worthless diplomas never attend or flunk out their first semester of college. Readers of this blog know that I believe that our current practice of pretending to prepare all students for college is a cruel hoax on our taxpayers, parents and particularly the students!
Juking the stats also includes hiding the true passing scores on state tests (LEAP and EOC tests) by reporting only scale scores that look pretty good while the students statewide are averaging only a little above 40% on the percentage of questions the students answered correctly.
Another way of juking the stats is to pressure school counselors to register almost all graduates of a school as accepted applicants to college. Here's the thing: Some colleges have entrance requirements that would exclude many of our high school graduates because they are not truly qualified to succeed in college. But there are many fly-by-night colleges thet will accept almost anyone. So just getting kids accepted to college is extremely easy if you fill out the correct forms. But none if this means that all these "accepted" students will actually attend college. It is very sad that many of our students who are given worthless diplomas never attend or flunk out their first semester of college. Readers of this blog know that I believe that our current practice of pretending to prepare all students for college is a cruel hoax on our taxpayers, parents and particularly the students!
TFA corps member and experienced teacher exposes fraudulent claims
Here is a blog post from Gary Rubinstein that revues the true performance of Louisiana students on AP tests. The chart above shows that Louisiana has actually slipped lower in performance from the 2016 year.
Superintendent White is a failure using the very measures of success that he used to claim that Louisiana schools were failing before he took over our schools.
John White thought he could bully teachers to produce higher student test scores and send more of our kids to college. Our students are not progressing because the new Common Core based curriculum and the associated tests are not valid. He has failed miserably using the very standards he has used to criticize us before he took over. Juking the stats is a poor substitute for the real education our students so desperately need.
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