Kids struggle in social studies

["Charles Brown" <cbrown@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

With all the contradictions in America's political and social real life so
evident in public discourse, no wonder it doesn't make sense to the kids in
theory in school.

Charles


Tuesday, October 7, 2003
Kids struggle in social studies
Fewer than 1 in 3 in four-county area meets state standard; 52 percent fail
writing test

By Tony Manolatos / The Detroit News

Students across Metro Detroit appear to be more familiar with the Periodic
Table of the Elements than the Civil War. 
That seemed evident after results of the MEAP, the standardized tests
Michigan schools use to measure student performance, were released Friday. 
Students in Oakland, Macomb, Wayne and Livingston counties scored lowest in
social studies and writing. In the four-county area, fewer than one of three
students met state expectations in social studies. Fewer than half of
fourth-graders, or 48 percent, met state writing standards. 
Schools excelled in science -- 76 percent of fifth-graders passed. They also
did better in reading and math, with 73 percent meeting fourth-grade reading
standards and 65 percent meeting fourth-grade math standards. 
Officials from a handful of school districts pledged to revamp curriculum to
improve low scores. 
Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, schools where students don't
meet the minimum state standards for three years are required to pay for new
tutoring programs and other federally mandated improvements. Schools that
fail two years straight must allow students to transfer to better-performing
school districts. 
With two children in Plymouth-Canton Community Schools, Canton Township
parent Cathy Donaldson is pleased with the district's MEAP scores, but she
said the exam carries too much weight with schools. 
"I'd rather see them concentrate on the whole curriculum versus what is
going to be on the MEAP," Donaldson said. 
Thus far, the focus of No Child Left Behind has been on English, math and
science, said Diane Szalka, associate superintendent for learning services
at the Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency. 
"It's forced all of the school districts to zero in on those areas," Szalka
said. 
Scores in Oakland County brought no real surprises, with high performers
such as Troy, Bloomfield Hills, Birmingham and Rochester all ranking at the
top. 
Though his district ranked near the bottom in Oakland County, Oak Park
Superintendent Alex Bailey said the scores reflect an upward trend compared
with previous years. 
"That said, the final analysis is that failure and student failure is not
acceptable," he said. "The handwriting is on the wall, and we're going to
change the way we do business." 
Students in Troy and Bloomfield Hills garnered the top spots in five
categories. Troy's student scores dipped below 60 percent in meeting state
expectations in the social studies categories. 
Some of the highest scores in the state in fifth-grade science came from
Hartland and Brighton in Livingston County. In Hartland, 95.3 percent of
students met or exceeded state standards. In Brighton, the score was 93.5
percent. 
Students there also struggled with social studies, however. 
"We're in the process of writing new social studies curriculum right now,
but it's just amazing the stuff they want covered by the fifth grade," said
Laurie Mays, assistant superintendent of curriculum for Hartland. 
Macomb County school districts scored best in science and math. 
"The social studies portion is really rigorous, and a lot of the information
is new to the students," said Mike LaBuhn, a fifth-grade teacher at Armada
Later Elementary, which tied students from Fraser schools for the top score
in Macomb in fifth-grade science.
 
Detroit News Staff Writers Brad Heath, Shantee Woodards, Amy Lee and Steve
Pardo contributed to this story. You can reach Tony Manolatos at (586)
468-0520 or tmanolatos@xxxxxxxxxxxx



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