A couple days ago, the letter grades came out for all of the schools in Indiana. A very smart person among us (hats off to MaryAnn Schlegel Ruegger) realized that the grading system was not fair at all. She uncovered the fact that new charters and IPS Innovation Network Schools are all allowed to be graded on growth only if they so choose.
(They chose). There are over 40 schools statewide that are choosing to report bogus grades in this manner.
Many of the news articles that have been released discussing the letter grades for the schools did not point this out.
This, of course, provided a PR field day for IPS and especially the Mind Trust- whose reputation is at stake if their incubated Innovation Network Schools should be reported as failing:
So these grades are based on growth in scores ONLY, resulting in the A and B grades. But, what are the REAL scores for these schools? Let’s take a look at the actual percentages of students PASSING BOTH MATH AND ELA:
Cold Spring: 30.2%
Enlace: 28.0%
Global Prep: no data
Phalen 103: 12.8%
Phalen 93: 38.2%
Kipp Indy: 18.0%
Kindezi: no data
I teach at the college level, and my students would never get an A or B for these scores. Do the parents know that their child’s A and B-rated school is graded on the sell-out curve? Do the parents know that in the world of public education, the dollar sign is highly favored over the percentage passing sign?? And bogus grades are being created in order to continue to drive customers to failing schools?
And do the parents know there are some traditional public IPS schools that are performing better than the schools listed above? But this is the truth that the Mind Trust and IPS don’t want the public or the parents to know, so that the privatization of our public schools can continue.
Please share widely, and if you haven’t already, follow Indy Apples and the IPS Community Coalition on Facebook, or become a member of the IPS Community Coalition at this site. Those are two groups dedicated to exposing the truth about public education in Indianapolis.
*Thanks to MaryAnn Schlegel Ruegger and Indy Apples for graphics and ideas. Data comes from IDOE Compass or 9/6/17 Chalkbeat article detailing ISTEP scores.