School board not satisfied with report card

SHAWANO — Report cards released last week by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction showed higher overall scores at all of the Shawano public schools, putting the district close to its 2021 goal of being a four-star school district.

However, some members of the Shawano School Board were not as optimistic about the data the report cards show as administrators, and they’re concerned that the schools are not improving as much as the numbers indicate.

Kelly Strike, Shawano School District’s curriculum, instruction and assessment director, noted at Monday’s board meeting that the district’s student achievement numbers were stagnant in some cases and lower in others, but noted that trend was statewide. It was other things that bumped the district’s overall score from 68.8 to 71.4.

“Our increases have largely been the result of increases in (students’ individual) growth and closing (achievement) gaps,” Strike said, noting that school administrators are looking into ways to improving student achievement.

Board member Chris Gull said the student achievement results were “pathetic.” He felt the schools were not looking at ways to continue to challenge their more gifted and talented students.

“We are 40% below the state, and that is ridiculous. That is unacceptable,” Gull said. “That means we’re leaving behind our best and brightest.”

Gull held up the detailed reports DPI did to explain each school’s report cards and called them junk, saying it would likely go in the garbage after the meeting.

“If you can add two plus two equals four, it’s still four, no matter what your income is, no matter what your race is,” Gull said. “Are we manipulating the fuzziness, or are we making strides?”

Board member Mart Grams was concerned about absenteeism in the middle and high schools. He pointed out that the district went to later start times for the two schools, but questioned whether any data indicates if more students were coming to school on time, not sleeping in classes, and doing better during the first two periods of the day.

“What I hear anecdotally is that students are still sleeping in class. There’s not an increase in attendance, what we were hoping for, and students are leaving earlier for athletics because the school stays so late,” Grams said. “Maybe that’s why we’re down to only 56% of our kids can pass a test.”

Grams also suggested the board would benefit from seeing the cohort data, so it could look at this year’s seventh-grade students and how they scored on the Forward exam in the fourth, fifth and sixth grades.

Superintendent Randi Anderson said the administrators have just started looking at the latest data to see what is happening in the schools and what can be done to create change.

“You really need to look at a body of evidence to be able to determine whether or not you, as a school system, are successful,” Anderson said.

She noted those conversations will also address Gull’s concerns about those students who are above grade level and whether they continue to be challenged by what they learn in class.

Board member Michael Sleeper said he is pleased with the work that the schools have put in so far, adding that the level of learning is not where it needs to be yet. However, he said, the district cannot expect a system of one-size-fits-all when it comes to its students.

“We have fared better than the state, on a trendline basis, which is another way to look at it,” Sleeper said. “Demographics do play a role; we need to understand that. We know that students that come from poverty or low socioeconomic conditions do not learn at the same rate as those who come from other conditions.”

That comment drew ire from other board members, who claimed that income level does not determine intelligence.

“I came from poverty, so I don’t think we can use that as an excuse,” said board member Alysia Pillsbury. “We need to understand the demographics but never use it as an excuse to say, ‘Alysia, you can’t learn as well as Jimmy.’ It’s a little offensive how that’s said.”

“You know what it really comes down to? It’s the family. It’s the parents,” said board member Chuck Dallas. “Your parents probably wanted more for you. I come from poverty, too. We had nothing. My mother said, ‘You’re going to go to college.’ That’s not the case in every household.”

Grams said the district should not be happy that it “meets expectations,” because it indicates a barely passing grade. For him, that’s the equivalent of a participation trophy.

“Technically, to meet expectations, you got a D-minus,” Grams said. “A 71, that’ll give you a D-plus. I don’t consider that a good anything.”

Board member Diane Hoffman disagreed, noting that any improvement in scores is a good thing, and setting the four-star goal for 2021 was done years ago because the schools acknowledged it would take time to grow and improve.

“You’re not going to make a jump from a 64 to 73 in one year,” Hoffman said.

Strike noted that the report cards are only one point of data used to measure how well students are learning in Shawano, albeit a point that’s prominently in public view.

“We must look at our local data, as well, including classroom performance and observations,” Strike said.

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com