Looking at the Issues Header
May 25, 2012
Looking at the Week Header

Jackson and Hoover Rank Among Best in the Nation     

For the second year in a row, The Washington Post has ranked Hoover and Jackson among the most challenging high schools in the nation. Only 31 high schools in Ohio made the list that Post Columnist Jay Matthews calls the nation's top 9%. Newsweek has also recognized Hoover as one of the best 1,000 public high schools in the nation.  

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Stark Leads Ohio's Major Counties in Passing 3rd Grade Reading

 

In a Columbus Dispatch Op Ed piece last Saturday[1], Education Reform Must Address Poverty, Ohio University's Guido H. Stempel III used the Ohio Achievement Assessment (OAA) third grade reading scores from Franklin County to support the notion that "poverty is clearly a major problem in student performance in our schools." The answer, Stempel contends in the face of ongoing debate about a third grade reading guarantee, "is not more tests or better tests."

 

Citing that more than 90% pass in Bexley, Dublin, Grandville and Upper Arlington where poverty is less than 20%, Stempel goes on in his analysis, noting that in four districts where more than 50% are in poverty, the pass rate averages 70%.

 

While Stemple's points are valid for most of Ohio where only 80% of third graders pass (state poverty rate is 45%), things are different in Stark County. While Jackson with a 95% pass rate has less than 20% poverty like its Franklin counterparts, Stark has an additional six districts, with poverty between 20% and 44%, where better than 90% of the students also pass. In five of Stark's six districts with greater than 50% poverty, between 81% to 87% of the students pass.

 

In fact, of Ohio's largest counties including their "Big Eight" urban districts, Stark has the largest county-wide pass rate.

 

Third Grade Passing Rate  

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[1]http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2012/05/19/education-reform-must-address-poverty.html  

[2] Note: Third grade reading scores based on 2010-11 academic year Ohio Achievement Assessment Test

About the Partnership Long Header
The Stark Education Partnership, Inc., is a 501(c)-3 non-profit education reform support organization in Stark County, Ohio crossing the lines of 17 public school districts. The Partnership collaborates with educators, business, community and civic leaders to create and respond to opportunities that will add substantial and measurable value to education.

 
Questions or comments? Email aoneill@edpartner.org or call 330-452-0829. Visit our website at http://www.edpartner.org