December 01, 1999|By Mike Bowler | Mike Bowler,SUN STAFF
AT NOON TODAY, people anywhere on the planet with access to the Internet will be able to look at the 1999 results of the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) in more depth than would have been dreamed possible only a few years ago.
They can learn all the major demographic and educational data for any public school in Maryland: enrollment, MSPAP test scores for seven years running, number of children receiving free lunches (a measure of poverty), student mobility rates, dropout rates, number of boys and number of girls, racial statistics, test results by race and gender -- and that's only a part of it.
Thanks to computers and the Internet, interested parties can do some sophisticated comparisons. With a few clicks, the computer will create a graph showing whether a school is an outlier -- doing better or worse than expected, given its scores and demographics. If 43 percent of a school's third-graders scored at the satisfactory level in reading, for example, a feature called "visual display" will show the school's student mobility rate against the rate of all other Maryland third grades with the same score.
It's an invaluable service made possible by the wonders of technology. It's also the very essence of accountability. The service allows parents to answer the questions, "Where are we?" and "How did we get here?" What can't be answered is, "Where are we going?"
Mark Moody, assistant superintendent in charge of testing, says Maryland has had 8.3 million "hits" on its Web site (www.msde.state.md.us) in the 11 months since it opened, although only 200,000 to 300,000 are classified as "unique users" because they left their names or e-mail addresses.
Maryland is one of 26 states displaying its statewide test scores and other information on the Web, says Kathy Christie, director of the clearinghouse at the Education Commission of the States, a Denver-based organization that monitors the nation's schools.
"For parents and people who want a dispassionate look at what's happening in their schools, this is an invaluable service," she says. "Because of the increasing sophistication of the data, we're beginning to spot patterns, seeing what works and what doesn't."
Left unstated is that parents can look at the data and draw their own conclusions without filtering by the educators or (yikes!) the media.
Not long ago, Maryland's data collecting was primitive at best. For years in the early 1970s, the State Department of Education released data for all districts except Baltimore. The city, which had a unique legal status, was so incompetent that it couldn't gather accurate data even for basic categories like enrollment.
Then there was a period during which racial data were withheld, lest unfavorable comparisons be made. To this day, state officials are sensitive about making comparisons. They refuse to rank districts or schools, but with a little work, anyone can do it. The data are out there for anyone with a computer and modem to see and examine, condemn or admire.
The way it should be in a free society.
Moody says the 1999 facts and figures will be on the Web at noon today, after state Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick's annual MSPAP news conference in downtown Baltimore.
State's 24 school districts share information on Web
The Maryland Association of Boards of Education has launched a useful Web site that will allow board members in the 24 districts to share information. But, of course, the site is available to all. It includes a directory and forum, calendar of events, reference library and legislative updates. The address is www.mabe.org.
Elite group of teachers earns national certification
A new group of Maryland teachers has reached the highest pinnacle of their profession: certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
These teachers survived a voluntary months-long process in which they went through rigorous self-examination and examination by outside experts.
They are: Deborah McClintock (Fullerton Elementary, Baltimore County), Barrie Hershkowitz (Chapel Forge Special Center, Prince George's), Holly Jurin (Yorktown Elementary, Prince George's), Angela Tirdil (Woodmore Elementary, Prince George's), Kenneth Baxter (Beall Junior-Senior High, Allegany), Susan Lancaster (Mount Savage School, Allegany), Elizabeth McCook (Urbana High School, Frederick).
Also: Joanne McKernon (Marshall Elementary, Montgomery), Judith Van Tol Wilson (Carver Elementary, St. Mary's), Sarahjeann Davis (Catonsville Middle, Baltimore County), Pamela Joyner-Parker (Drew Elementary, Montgomery), Kimberly Stewart (Glade Elementary, Frederick), Karen Johnston (Boonsboro Elementary, Washington County), Sharon Palm (Urbana High, Frederick) and Evelyn Arnold (Lackey Senior High, Charles).
