Hispanic students in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are posting higher math scores and progressing faster than their peers in big cities across the country, according to a new report.
Fourth-grade Hispanic students in CMS scored higher in national math exams than any other large urban district, the Child Trends report shows. And eighth graders improved their math scores by the equivalent of nearly two grade levels in the past decade.
The findings are significant for two reasons, the report's authors say: Hispanic students are becoming a larger percentage of the student body, meaning "the math achievement of Hispanic students today foreshadows our national performance tomorrow."
And second, these test score improvements come despite Hispanic students being disproportionately low-income in Charlotte and most other large districts.
All the data comes from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a benchmark math and reading test given to fourth and eighth graders.
Other top performing large districts cited in the report are Boston and Houston.
Nationally, about one in four elementary school students are Hispanic. CMS elementary schools mirror that ratio, state Department of Public Instruction figures show. About 20 percent of CMS students are Hispanic, according to data from the 2013-14 school year.
The Child Trends report tracks scores through 2013. I haven't seen the most recent data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress. But CMS touted gains in other measures of academic achievement among Hispanics earlier this year.
The graduation rate for Hispanics increased 20 percentage points in the last four years, hitting 74.6 percent. End-of-year test scores in math, English and science also increased slightly from the year before. Both still lagged well behind the rates for white students.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
Hispanic CMS students ahead of other urban districts in math scores
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32 comments:
Imagine that.
Tack this story to the last one from Dunn and you see a stark reality.
That reality is that for decades, it's been all about Blacks and Whites and the "achievement gap".
I started looking at trends a number of years ago as to how Hispanics were performing versus Whites and Blacks and the trend continues as stated in the article.
Here you have another minority group, many of whom speak little to no English, outperforming Blacks in many cases and accelerating faster towards "closing the achievement gap" with Whites.
This has to become a moot point pretty soon because Whites are now the minority in public schools nationally for the first time.
So why are Hispanics outperforming Blacks? What can be learned from their success stories than can be replicated in the Black community?
It certainly doesn't seem it is a funding issue.
My Hispanic students come to school to learn. They are respectful and hard working. Even the ones who have recently arrived and speak little to no English.
Education is a priority in the households of the Hispanic families.
Simple as that!
just curious, since when did memorizing study guides (word for word) and watching Disney videos at school become "education"?
When you look at all the recent research, the students who are most disadvantaged are the ones that have the best outcomes after the school start time change, in terms of better reading and math scores, better attendance and less tardiness. Get rid of the 7:15am high school start time.
Is this tge real reason the school board had their lawyer conduct a witch hunt to justify their firing Dr. Morrison? His results with one disadvantaged minority group made theirs look particularly bad?
Fannie where is your insight. Now whites prefer Hispanics to African Americans. Expect a story against amnesty from her.
Andrew, any chance you can do a story on why we are considered an urban system, and compete with systems which are real urban systems?
For some reason everyone seems to be happy ignoring all those suburban schools which need to be deconsolidated into a real manageable districts.
Thanks
EXACTLY
These results hurt the black community and it is an ongoing trend. Take any ethnic low income group as well as low income whites and they score better than blacks
CMS does not want to hear any of this as well because it may cut off the Federal $ honeypot and the private funding such as the $55 Million Project Lift. It is all a game they play to keep the funds coming in. ANY superintendent that does not bow down to this group and the talking BofE heads will be fired. Try holding their feet to the fire of not taking the Federal funds and you will be shown the door one way or another just like Gorman and Morrison.
1:52
Get a grip. Fannie retired a while back. Maybe you can find another target to direct your succinct analysis to.
.
HERE’S ANOTHER REPORT OF STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
(originally printed in American’s Finest News Source: The Onion )
“..ALEXANDRIA, VA—Marveling at his extraordinary proficiency in geometry for someone his age, teachers at T.C. Williams High School told reporters Thursday that local 10th-grade prodigy Michael Greenan is currently studying mathematics at a 10th-grade level.
“Michael is a really gifted kid. He’s working his way through a sophomore math textbook right now, learning and applying concepts such as the Pythagorean theorem and the Cartesian coordinate system that his fellow 10th-graders can’t even begin to comprehend,” said Greenan’s math teacher, Emily Cress, citing the 16-year-old whiz’s impressive understanding of the state-mandated curriculum that is designated appropriate for his age range.
“The truth is, he’s always had exceptional mathematical abilities. I remember hearing crazy stories years ago about how he passed his eighth-grade placement tests at 13. If he keeps this up, by the end of the year, he could be ready for 11th-grade algebra 2.”
Cress went on to add that at this rate, the wunderkind will probably graduate from college by the time he’s 22.”
Bolyn McClung
Pineville
.
Bolyn,
Love it.
Alicia
The automobile companies can use catchy songs to entice people to buy new cars, trucks and SUVs. Why can't CMS use some to entice certain groups of kids to want to learn? Heck, Come Up Man makes me want to go out and buy a Caddy and it is my most disliked brand.
We need a disrupter, not the same'0, same'0 like you-know-who will bring.
An aside: St. Louis area black politicians want to make that county all one school district, doing away with all the middle -class suburban districts, per The Guardian. They say that is the only way to equalize educational opportunities and close "the achievement gap." Someone should them to Charlotte for a short visit.
Anon 9:58pm
"They say that is the only way to equalize educational opportunities and close 'the achievement gap.'"
It's all just one big red herring.
Whenever someone says "equalize" about anything it is a signal they are just blowing smoke.
Because it just won't happen.
It really means they just want your money for their project (and their pockets).
I put it right up there with people who say they want to "share" something with me.
Unfortunately, it's usually something I don't want, but that doesn't stop them from "sharing".
It all makes for nice sounding slogans to rally around and try to get folks to spend billions of dollars of other people's money to achieve.
And that's the real game they're playing.
If someone really wants to close the "achievement gap", they can.
It takes individual effort, though, and that's what a lot of people lack.
It can be done with what is currently in place, as many people (including recent immigrants) have shown.
For the rest, they don't use the opportunities they already have.
Giving them more probably won't help.
I am not surprised to see this report. When attending award ceremonies I have noticed hispanic children receiving many awards. These children are usually polite and eager to work hard, and they are typically in a home where the mother and father are present.
This report also hurts those who would use poverty as an excuse for lower academic performance!
I would like to correct my statement from 11:22,
I do think poverty has a negative impact upon a child's education, poor children do not have the same resources at home. But we need to be careful not to use poverty as an excuse to merely except that poor children will not or cannot perform at a higher level.
The hispanic community has proven with a supportive family at home, hard work,and determination, children can do very well despite being in poverty.
1:42...
What resources not at home would those be?
Are these legal or illegal hispanic students ?
How many of these students are using the RESOURCES that have not been paid for by the legal taxpayers.
Anon 1:42.
"But we need to be careful not to use poverty as an excuse to merely except that poor children will not or cannot perform at a higher level."
But it will be.
Simply because most people are too ignorant to understand the difference between correlation and causation.
Many are incapable of considering of other possible "causes" which may be worth exploring (like the "parenting" problem you mentioned).
Also, tons of folks BENEFIT from the "poverty" excuse and the political and social machinery that has developed around it.
I put it down to bad science education for the masses(among a few other things).
Of course, those masses "grow up" to become voters, community "leaders", etc., etc., and influence policy if by no other way than being easy prey for the political sharks and quacks out there.
This is the real tragedy of a bad public education system.
It poisons the pool for everyone.
You are absolutely right Shamash. There is no difference between the Hispanic families in the US now with the second generation going into school and all the immigrates that flooded the US around the 1900s. The first generation Italians, Polish, Irish etc were ignorant (in terms of schooling and learning English), but it is the second and third generations that worked extremely hard, had respect for education and the American dream and so came out of poverty on the backs of their parents/grandparents. Most of us that are of European heritage has this story. (and I don't want to hear we have been here since 1700's because 10 % of us are from the Mayflower as well)
Unfortunately bad luck and timing are getting the best of the Hispanic culture in an age of paperwork, laws and having to doing everything legally. But they still have the same values as the immigrants that came here 1850-1920s.
So until the programs for the poor really get to the heart of the issue and stop throwing money away at things like Project Lift and preach: what it really takes to make it in the real world; it is a bunch of malarkey. These Hispanic test scores are the real proof of success on the backs of first generation immigrants who have respect for school, hard work and having the American dream.
Wiley,
those resources would include a computer, the internet, books, decent clothes, perhaps even a warm bed. But the most important resource, one that precludes all other resources, parents that act like real parents.
Not to mention the religious quack leaders that prevail around Charlotte. They rent out our high schools and ask for monetary contributions on a daily basis.
Anonymous said...
Wiley,
those resources would include a computer, the internet, books, decent clothes, perhaps even a warm bed. But the most important resource, one that precludes all other resources, parents that act like real parents
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Computer - school and county library
Books - school and county library
Internet - school and county library
Clothes - non issue
Warm bed - yes there are some who are homeless
Caring parents - ahhh... yep the #1 bullet point that tax money can't buy or fix.
So in the end, a bunch of excuses for failure.
Wiley you can talk about all the resources in the world for these kids/poverty but you always nail it is parenting issue.
I feel like there is a portion of our society that has completely forgotten, never learned, lost the instinct on how to take care of themselves; make themselves and their offspring better than the generation before.
How is that a poverty stricken parent doesn't know how to take their children to the library to check out books, it seems instinctual? To read to a 3 year old, it seems instinctual? To not let a 5 year old with school the next day stay up until midnight, it seems instinctual? To continue to have children out of wedlock or financial support, it seems instinctual?
If in todays modern society these people do not get it, I really don't know how you make them get it, yes some of it is complete bad luck, but I believe for a majority they have lost their instinct to take care of themselves and have lost it forever. No amount of money is going to change and bring back the lost instinctual ability to properly raise your offspring.
Maybe it is to many government programs, maybe it is a genetic issue, maybe our world has gone mad, but it breaks my heart, it sets in confusion for so many people that can make it, but one thing is for sure these Hispanic test scores are the real deal and show you what good instincts can do for your future generations.
After tomorrow night - unless Republicans stop this madness after January - be prepared for CMS and every other school district in the US start the war cry "We need more money due to the addition of 5 MILLION illegals who are now US citizens.
...coming to a school district near you.
Wiley,
I think you might be over stating just a little. First, these kids are already in our public schools, at least in our public schools, the school systems are not allowed to reject them. Also, while I don't agree with what Obama is about to do, he is not making them citizens.
anon 1:23PM and anon 10:22Am,
two of the best posts I have ever read on this blog!
7:24...
It is almost guaranteed that when budget time comes and this "legalization" comes to pass, they will invoke the "we have more students in need, therefore we need more money".
Refer to the recent book that stirred a big deal around Charlotte and sparked Project Lift, "Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America". There is a study documented in the early chapters of the book about the black american family life and its negative impact on the children. Even more relevant is that the study was conducted in NC. Go read its summation yourself.
"Maybe it is to many government programs, maybe it is a genetic issue, maybe our world has gone mad,"
The only one you can talk about is the world having gone mad.
The others are too "sensitive" to discuss.
Because the world (at least in the US and some other western countries...) HAS gone mad.
I'm just more and more thankful that everyone isn't this way, though.
And let's not get all misty-eyed over the "Hispanics", either.
Saying someone is "Hispanic" is like saying someone is a native English speaker (and not much more).
Of course, in the US, Hispanic usually means Mexican, but they are a mix of people, too.
And if you look at Mexico as a nation, it is hard to say that they "value education".
Maybe the ones who LEAVE Mexico DO value education, but Mexico's education system is below pathetic for most of its population.
Of course, that doesn't mean that they can't do well when they get to the US where we do have a better education system than the ones they left behind.
And success, like many things, is relative.
For someone whose parents were basically peasants with elementary school educations, graduating from HS is success.
Of course, hard-driving Asian parents might disagree, but many of them come from much stronger traditions of valuing education.
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/uc/2014/04/starting_from_the_bottom_why_mexicans_are_the_most_successful_immigrants.html
If every kid increased scores by 10% the "achievement gap" would widen.
If every kid decreased scores by 10% the "achievement gap" would narrow.
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