Thursday, December 4, 2014

Do Parent Trigger laws work?

Early indications are positive, according to an October 8 press release from Parent Revolution:
Ever since parents began using California’s historic Parent Empowerment Act, a key question has followed our work around California and the nation: Does parent power lead to student success?

We know that the challenging nature of school transformation efforts means that it will take years to more conclusively answer that question. Almost all student assessments were suspended in California schools last year due to field-testing for new Common Core-aligned assessments.

Even with that enormous challenge, however, it is encouraging to see that the first two Parent Trigger schools saw significant student gains in CST science scores, the one test that was administered last year. Here is some raw data:



24th Street / Crown Preparatory Academy

CST Science – Grade 5, Grade 8, and Grade 10 Life Science

2013
2014
Students Tested
84
102
% of Enrolled
98.8%

Students with Scores
84
101
Mean Scale Score
312.6
373.0
% Advanced
2%
33%
% Proficient
19%
32%
% Basic
42%
23%
% Below Basic
18%
7%
% Far Below Basic
19%
6%


Desert Trails Preparatory Academy

CST Science – Grade 5, Grade 8, and Grade 10 Life Science

2013
2014
Students Tested
82
68
% of Enrolled
83.7%

Students with Scores
82
68
Mean Scale Score
297.5
348.5
% Advanced
2%
12%
% Proficient
10%
35%
% Basic
30%
38%
% Below Basic
30%
9%
% Far Below Basic
27%
6%

10 year science score data for Desert Trails Elementary Schools
Year
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
Adv.
3
2
0
2
4
0
0
3
5
2
12
Prof.
8
15
14
13
24
21
12
19
26
10
35
Basic.
45
38
37
35
44
30
34
33
30
30
38
BB
30
27
37
25
17
21
32
24
11
30
9
FBB
15
19
12
26
11
28
23
20
28
27
6
Adv./Prof
11%
17%
14%
15%
29%
21%
12%
22%
31%
12%
47%



This data, while very limited in nature, also aligns with the parent survey data gathered at the end of last year, in which 91 percent of parents at Desert Trails Preparatory Academy and 83 percent of the parents at 24th Street Elementary said their schools had improved from the year before.

Kathy Duncan, a parent of two Desert Trails Preparatory students, shared her satisfaction with the school’s transformation: "As a parent, I am happy to send my child to DTPA. Everyone was happy the first day. I saw new faces that had never seen before. I would like to shine a light on [Desert Trails school leader] Ms. Debbie Tarver and her staff. My children, Jeremiah and Evelyn have had an exceptional time at DTPA."

While this data doesn’t paint anything close to a complete picture, it’s promising. Chief Strategy Officer Gabe Rose explains, "We of course cannot draw conclusions based on one subject test during one year, but the emerging evidence at these schools gives us an abundance of hope that we are on the right track, and can’t wait to share all data we gather with parents as they organize to do what’s best for their kids. We know from research that at best, only 25-30 percent of school turnaround efforts generally succeed, but we are confident that the consistent presence of organized and engaged parents will make our efforts substantially more successful."

Yes, it matters to close the political power gap and to empower low-income parents of color. It’s not only the right thing to do, and it can, does, and will turn schools around so they work better for all kids -- because all kids matter.

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