Enterprise High misses mark in special education reading

By Kelly Tabor

Published: August 6, 2008

While nearly all schools in the Enterprise City School system met proficiency goals in the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) status reports, Enterprise High School did not make AYP, as defined in the No Child Left Behind Act, because of reading scores in special education.

In the accountability reports released by the Alabama Department of Education, schools are given a pass or fail on reading, mathematics, and another academic indicator, which for EHS is its graduation rate. EHS passed all other aspects of AYP.

“Any deficiency there is, we’re going to address it,” said Superintendent Jim Reese. “I was pleased that it was just one subgroup that had an area of concern. No Child Left Behind is always so technical, so difficult to meet. But whatever we have to do, we’re going to do it.”

Cheryl Johns, the district’s school improvement coordinator, said the high school’s exams are only given in the eleventh grade, and high schools are required to meet the highest standards with a minimum of 86 percent of students at grade level or above.

“It’s forcing us to have high expectations of students, which is the whole idea,” said Johns. “I think the fairness of the criteria is questionable. We’re going to have to have special consideration for special ed. students. It’s been a real concern for all states, not just Alabama.”

Johns said high school students taking the exam are divided into groups based on race, limited English knowledge, special education, and those qualifying for free or reduced-price meals. AYP scores count only if students in a certain group number 40 or more, and EHS has 44 special education eleventh graders.

One controversial aspect of NCLB is that if a school misses one goal of AYP, it is listed as having failed that entire portion and the school is placed on a “school improvement” list. Enterprise High School must now implement a school improvement team to create a plan to increase reading performance.

“We want the best for all students,” said Reese. “We don’t need any law to tell us that.”

Johns said one setback was after last year’s tornado. the special education department lost a lot of technology and students were displaced.

“We know we need to work on comprehension skills,” said Johns, who looks at data and scores to determine areas of weakness. “Our programs are solid, but we need to move to the next stage.”

One piece of good news, said Johns, is that fewer children are entering special education in the first place, thanks to the Alabama Reading Initiative and the Alabama Math Science & Technology Initiative. “It’s moving more students to grade level and above at an early age.”

Four years ago when NCLB was created, just 23 percent of Alabama public schools made AYP, but this year 83 percent of the state’s 1,367 public schools passed.