MARYLAND--If you live in Broadneck, Severna Park, the South River area or south county, chances are you're a lot more satisfied with county schools.
But if you live in north county, Annapolis, Glen Burnie or near Fort George G. Meade, you're more likely to be worried about school safety, dropout rates and achievement gaps, according to a survey released by an advisory group to the Board of Education this week.
In the study, done by the Citizens Advisory Committee, about 4,000 county residents were surveyed on their level of satisfaction with the school system, which has more than 75,000 students. While the survey, released Tuesday, was unscientific, it offers a glimpse of the concerns of county parents and citizens - concerns that could be addressed by the advisory committee in the coming year, said CAC president Joanna Conti.
"Our hope is to come back to you with some innovative solutions for you," Conti told the school board.
The survey was conducted after the newly elected Conti said she wanted to get feedback about issues that mattered to parents and community members, in order to redirect the CAC. The group had been plagued by allegations that the school board was trying to control it.
Overall, the survey found that 72 percent of parents and citizens responding rated schools as excellent or good.
Respondents from the lowest-rated county schools were more likely to say they were very concerned that students are unsafe at schools or are being bullied - 40 percent and 61 percent, respectively.
Among those in the top-rated feeder systems, 20 percent said they were very concerned about students being unsafe at school and 52 percent said they were very concerned about bullying.
Forty percent of those at the lowest-rated schools were much more likely to worry about students dropping out; the equivalent figure was 19 percent in the top-rated feeder systems. Some 32 percent of those in the lowest-rated feeders were more likely to indicate that minority students not achieving at the same level as white students was a top concern; it was 18 percent in the top-rated feeder systems.
The survey also indicated concerns about students' ability to compete in the sciences and about teachers focusing too much on teaching to tests.
The majority of survey respondents also indicated serious concerns about infrastructure, such as the condition of school buildings and whether they could accommodate large classes.
Trends, not problems
School board President Patricia Nalley said the survey is much smaller than polls administered by county schools and may be more useful as an indication of trends, rather than specific problems. For example, it's commonly known that parents around the county are concerned about class sizes and bullying.
But she said some of the concerns indicated in the CAC survey likely show a need for better communication about school science curriculum or bullying.
"I'm not saying there aren't unsafe situations," Nalley said. "But I think some of it is a perception. It's rare I get an email saying 'My child isn't safe.' "
Conti said there were also serious concerns raised by two groups: parents of special education students and of minority students.
In the survey, 41 percent of parents of special needs children rated services to their children as excellent or good. Some indicated they had problems with individual education plans being followed or with getting their children's needs recognized, Conti said.
"This is a serious problem we need to give more attention to," she said.
County Parent Teacher Association President Ray Leone said the results represent the opinions of only a small fraction of parents and an even smaller fraction of county residents. But he added that gathering opinions in this way has great value.
He said he guesses that the concerns indicated by parents of special education and minority students probably don't reflect the full scope of problems. For example, many families with students who have special education needs require extra help to get educational resources for their children.
"It's a lot of money to put an extra body in every school that has a special education program," he said.
'Concern is real'
Nearly 65 percent of respondents who identified themselves as black or Hispanic said they were very concerned that minority students were not achieving at the same level as white students.
"We know that this concern is real. Our (Maryland Student Assessment) … test data shows our African-American students are not achieving at the level of our Caucasian students and this gap widens," Conti said.
The majority of white and Asian respondents did not see achievement among minority students as a concern or did not believe it was occurring.
"We have a major communication issue we need to address here," she said.
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Friday, April 22nd 2011 at 1:33PM
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