DOE needs plan to boost students’ college-readiness

ACT scores recently released show one thing across the board: The overwhelming majority of the state’s public school students are not college-ready.

And while not all students are bound for college after graduation, the lackluster showing is a wake-up call for the state Department of Education — and for that matter, Gov. David Ige, whose education message has been to reduce top-down management and hand over more fiscal control to school-level administrators.

While public-school juniors’ 17.5 ACT composite score improved slightly over last year, it trailed the national average of 21 out of a possible 36. Let’s do the math, shall we?

However, the DOE says the ACT is only one measurement tool the system uses as part of the Strive HI Index, a newer assessment system that replaced the No Child Left Behind federal system of grading schools.

"We’re not where we want to be. We want our students to do better. We’re moving in the right direction," said Assistant Superintendent Tammi Chun.

DOE spokesman Brent Suyama said other indicators such as more students passing the ninth grade, fewer suspensions and better attendance all show improvements.

But one cannot discount or dismiss the ACT’s jarring results. Of the 10,304 Hawaii public school students who took the ACT last year, only 39 percent met the college-ready benchmark in English, compared with 64 percent nationally. Meanwhile, just 24 percent met the reading benchmark score, compared to 44 percent nationally.

Dismally, in math, 22 percent of students hit the benchmark score, compared to 43 percent nationally. Seventeen percent hit the science benchmark, compared with 37 percent nationally.

The DOE in 2014 began requiring all public school juniors to take the college entrance exam to help assess college-and-career readiness. In fairness, a little more than a dozen state school systems actually require all students to take the exam. In other words, the ACT in most states is taken voluntarily by students who are likely college-bound.

Even so, it’s a sad statement when only 10 percent of Hawaii’s public school students met all four benchmarks. A benchmark score is the minimum score needed to indicate a 50 percent chance of obtaining a B or higher in the corresponding college courses, which include English composition, algebra, social science, and biology, according to the ACT.

When the scores were released, schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi grasped to find the silver lining, saying that the "improvements" (17.5 up from 17.3 in 2014) affirm the department’s focus on supporting all students for success after high school. No matter how you spin the results, though, the percentages make clear that much needs to be done to get more students proficient in core subjects.

Recent initiatives such as Strive HI Index are expected to set public schools on the right track. Additionally, last spring it rolled out the Smarter Balanced Assessment tests, a more rigorous test that is better aligned with Hawaii Common Core Standards, which were fully implemented in 2013-14.

"Going from where we were to where we need to be does not happen in a year or two," Suyama said.

Anecdotally, there are strides being made in individual schools. For instance, Chun said, Kaimuki High School reports that 78 students this fall are taking 411 college credits and that number is expected to increase to 900 by the end of the school year. That’s up from 2011, in which one student earned three college credits, she said.

While there is no magic formula for producing college-ready students across the board, when we expect better results, there should be a correlating increase in funding for public schools.

The DOE’s general fund budget has not changed since 2008, which is something lawmakers and the Ige administration will need to address during the next legislative session.

If the department were to receive additional funding, one main area where dollars could make an immediate impact is in the Weighted Student Formula, Suyama said. These funds go directly to the school and the principal can determine best where to put those funds.

"We fully acknowledge we’re not where we need to be yet," Suyama said.

Indeed, there can be no let-up until students are better educated.

On the horizon are the Smarter Balanced Assessment test results, expected to be released in mid-September, which will show if our public schools really are moving in the right direction.