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County's Schools Near Bottom On State Tests

29.2 Percent of Students Met Standards

By Lisa Frazier
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, December 18, 1997; Page M01

Prince George's County's overall performance declined slightly on Maryland's annual assessment tests last year, but school officials pointed out dramatic improvements made by some schools and highlighted their plans to boost the school system's overall performance.

Kenilworth Elementary School in Bowie was one of just 52 schools in Maryland where at least 70 percent of its students scored satisfactory or better on a combined average of the standardized tests. The Maryland State Performance Assessment Program (MSPAP) measures the performance of third-, fifth- and eighth-graders in reading, writing, language usage, math, science and social studies. Three other elementary schools, Barnaby Manor in Oxon Hill, Deerfield Run in Laurel and Edgar Allan Poe in Suitland, posted double-digit gains in their performance, results show.

The state's goal is to see 70 percent of students reaching the satisfactory mark in all areas by the year 2000.

Overall, just 29.2 percent of Prince George's public school students scored satisfactory or better on the tests -- the second-worst performing system in the state, behind Baltimore.

"I think right now there is an indication that no school system is going to meet the standard set by the state by the year 2000," Superintendent Jerome Clark said. "So to paint Prince George's County as a failing school system seems to be premature unless you look at all school systems."

Kenilworth Elementary, a school of about 711 students in downtown Bowie, met the standard in seven of the 12 subjects with a composite score of 70.8 percent -- the highest of all elementary schools in Prince George's. The goal next year will be for at least 70 percent of the school's students to score satisfactory in every area, Principal Richard M. Melzer said.

"We've got three things going for our school -- excellent students, supportive parents and a wonderful staff," said Melzer, who has been principal the last four years. "It's always a source of joy for your staff and faculty when they see we're doing so well."

Kenilworth's scores have risen in each of the past four years. After the scores are released, the staff analyzes them and develops a school improvement plan, focusing on the areas that need the most work, Melzer said.

Barnaby Manor in Oxon Hill made the biggest leap, improving by 22.5 percentage points the ratio of students who score satisfactory or better. While only 19.5 percent of its students met the satisfactory mark in 1996, 43.6 percent of them did so last year, results show.

Principal Laura Barbee, who is new to the school this year, credited her predecessor and the teaching staff. She said they met monthly to assess the curriculum, discuss teaching strategies and determine how to target resources. The school, which has about 706 students, features smaller class sizes and academic specialists, all financed through a court-ordered desegregation program known as "Milliken II," as compensation for the school's racial isolation.

"It gives us an extra edge to know we did well, but our goal is to continue climbing," Barbee said.

Other schools that showed significant increases were: Deerfield Run Elementary, which saw its ratio of students scoring satisfactory increase by 14.2 percentage points; Edgar Allan Poe, by 13.7 percentage points; Pointer Ridge by 9.9 percentage points; and Hyattsville by 9.6 percentage points.

But there were some dramatic declines, as well.

Princeton Elementary school, which had experienced consistent and drastic increases since 1993, saw its scores plummet by 22.1 percentage points last school year. Scores at Rogers Heights Elementary, which operates a popular French Immersion magnet program, also dipped by 16.7 percentage points.

"I think Prince George's County is unique," Clark said. "The demographics and the mobility of the school system are such that you will see some peaks and valleys."

The school system is attracting an increasing number of poor students, who often begin school behind their peers, Clark said. And the school system has a high percentage of new teachers, many of whom are working on provisional certificates.

Prince George's has attracted much statewide attention and criticism in recent months as legislators debate whether to increase financing to help build more neighborhood schools. Legislators have been particularly critical of the high percentage of the county's teachers who have not achieved full certification, about 12.8 percent, the highest in the state.

"All these things impact achievement," Clark said. "Yet in spite of all these things, our youngsters are holding their own. Given everything that's been touted, everything that's been shoved in our face, we can say to our public we're maintaining achievement. We're not going down."

Leroy Thompkins, chief divisional administrator for instruction, said he is confident the school system's performance will improve.

"We're convinced we do not have a dysfunctional or failing school system here," he said.

Clark said he has appointed a "Council for Change," a committee of about 20 parents, administrators and teachers who will recommend some intervention strategies for schools that consistently perform poorly. Last year, Clark reorganized six poorly performing schools, replacing the principals at all but one of the schools and requiring all of the staffs to reapply for their positions.

He put more schools on notice this year that they may be reorganized if their scores did not improve, but the reorganization process may not be as drastic, he said.

"We learned some things last year about how we did things," he said.