Paul Goldman’s referendum that would seek to place a school modernization plan in the city charter is pending before the voters.
An email from Paul today invites us all to attend the School Board meeting tonight to hear about his “plan that will finally give all students their. . . right to a modern,clean, safe, 21st century education compatible School facility.”
It’s hard to know how anybody could oppose replacing the many old school buildings that have not been properly maintained. Even so, we might wonder whether Paul’s focus on physical facilities, needed though they be, misses the more important point: Education.
We have some data on that.
The new Huguenot facility opened to students on January 5, 2015. So we have 2-1/2 years to see whether the new digs have affected academics.
To start, here are the reading pass rates by year at Huguenot:
The dips in 2013 surely reflect the new, tougher tests instituted that year. And we see some recovery in ‘14 and ‘15. But, to the point here, since then none of the three groups for which VDOE posted data has shown any academic benefit from the new facilities.
Well, how about writing?
OK, how about math?
They started to recover nicely from the new tests of 2012 but then, again, started slipping back.
Maybe History?
Aha! A small improvement this year among the black and white students. But nothing to brag about. And no bounce from the Hispanic, students.
We’ll need more than that to infer a learning effect from the new digs. Science is the last chance:
Well, whatever is going on at Huguenot, there’s no pattern of academic boosts from the new facilities.
These data don’t say there couldn’t be a new digs effect at some other school(s). But they do support the notion that Paul’s focus might be on the second most important issue.
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