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The second report from the Center for Community Performance Measurement, Benchmarking Public Education in Worcester, presents data on the performance of the Worcester Public Schools. These indicators can be used to determine whether the school district is accomplishing the goals of improved test scores, increased student attendance, and decreased dropout rates, among others. The data will serve as the baseline, and future releases of the report will determine which areas are improving and those that require more attention.
This report presents primarily district-level data and includes some comparisons to similar districts in Massachusetts (Lowell, Fall River, and Springfield). A data appendix at the end of the report presents school-level information.
Selected Findings:
Various studies, as cited in the report, indicate that students who drop out of high school have high rates of unemployment and low annual earnings compared to students who graduate. During the 2000-2001 school year, Worcester had a district-wide dropout rate of 6.2%, a very slight increase over the previous year's rate of 6.1%. Worcester's rate is significantly higher than the statewide dropout rate of 3.5% in 1999-2000. At the school-level, Doherty High School and South High School have seen decreases in their dropout rates each year for the last three years. Are there best practices at these schools for retaining students that could be considered for implementation in other schools?
The student mobility rate, which is the number of students who move from one school to another during the academic year, is one predictor of academic achievement; a student who starts the year at one school but moves to another midway through the year will not have the consistency of one teacher or one curriculum model. According to data calculated by the Worcester Public Schools, the average school mobility rate was 31% during the 1998-1999 school year (the most recent year for which data are available). At one elementary school, the mobility rate was close to 75%. The district is currently implementing various programs to reduce mobility and to mitigate its effects on student achievement; future collection and monitoring of the information will show whether these new programs are successful.
According to a recent survey completed by the CCPM and the Worcester Public Schools of companies who employ students in internships and graduates, approximately 75% of employers said that they are satisfied with the abilities of students and graduates of the WPS. Similarly, in the skill areas that employers said are most critical for success (work behavior/attitude and interpersonal skills), 35% of employers said that students are exceptional or above average in work behavior/attitude and 38% responded similarly in the area of interpersonal skills. It should be noted that 19% of employers said that WPS students are below average in written communication skills; how can the WPS improve students' skills in this area?
The number of students who passed the English language arts and math MCAS exams at the eighth- and tenth-grade levels has increased over the last year. However, the improvement in English at the tenth-grade level was after a steady decline in passing rates from 1998 to 2000. As well, Worcester continues to perform below the statewide average; in 2001, 82% of students statewide passed the English exam, whereas 66% of students in Worcester passed. The University Park Campus School (U.P.C.S), where all students passed the tenth-grade English and math exams, is an exception. To replicate this success, the WPS were recently awarded an $8 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation to restructure its large high school into smaller units. Monitoring of MCAS scores during and after the implementation of this restructuring will show whether other schools can achieve results similar to those at the U.P.C.S.
Download the full report (1.2MB PDF)
For more information or to receive a full copy of the report by mail contact:
Rick Beaman, CCPM Manager
508/799-7169