Marin children who aren’t
proficient in English graduate high school at significantly lower rates than
those who are, and school districts must make closing the gap a priority,
according to a new report by the Marin County Civil Grand Jury.
The report, “Every Child
Counts: English Learners in Marin Public Schools” found that while Novato High
School’s overall graduation rate was 93 percent, English learners’ rate was 38
percent points lower, at 55 percent. San Rafael High School’s overall rate was
89 percent, while English learners’ rate was 69 percent, 20 percent lower.
The report, released this
month, investigated Novato and San Rafael high schools because they had the
highest populations and lowest graduation rates of English learners. Students
who are not proficient in English are referred to as “English learners.”
The report identified four
major hurdles facing students not proficient in English. First, the difficulty
of learning in classes taught in English when the student doesn’t speak the
language.
Second, in order to graduate,
all students must earn 220 credits. Those who transferred from another country
may have trouble getting copies of their academic records, so they start off
behind their peers.
Some English learners can’t
read and write in any language, while others can; some speak a little English,
some none at all. It’s hard for teachers to teach on so many different levels.
The report also claimed that
English learners often get stuck at a certain level of English fluency as
measured by the California English Language Development Test, and don’t
progress.
“The gap in graduation
reports must be addressed,” said Jack Nixon, the jury foreperson.
According to Mary Jane Burke,
Marin County Superintendent of Schools, it already is.
“The schools have been working overtime to
ensure that the gaps we see are addressed in a comprehensive and systematic
say,” Burke said.
As just one example, “In San
Rafael, there are coaches supporting English learner students. They are making
sure the kids will progress at least one CELDT level per year,” Burke said,
referring to the California English Language Development Test.
According to the report,
there is “no urgent, focused approach taken by school district leadership to
address this graduation gap, and the graduation gap was … unknown to many
educators,” the report said.
Burke took issue with the
assertion, noting that the grand jury most likely did not have access to the
schools’ Local Control Accountability Plans. Such plans only became mandatory
last year.
These comprehensive plans are
written with input from the community, parents, educators and employees. “The
plan has to identify very specific goals, objectives and outcomes in terms of
how they are going to spend their money and how they are going to address
children who need more help to get to the same (level) as others,” Burke said.
The English learner coaches
are just one part of San Rafael’s local control plan, Burke said. “There are
many goals that address the needs of the English learner students.” Novato’s
plan’s goals also address these issues, Burke said, as do others throughout the
county.
Burke noted, “This issue is
not isolated to Novato or San Rafael. Throughout Marin County there are
children in our schools who are not primary English speakers. The approaches
that need to be taken must be done county-wide.”
The superintendent added, “In
no way am I defending the numbers. Are the numbers acceptable? Absolutely not.
Should we as a community tolerate this? Absolutely not.
“If there is any community in
the state of California that can ensure that we see progress related to this
gap, it is Marin County,” Burke said. “I want the community to know this is an
area of great concern and focus in all schools in Marin County.”
June
21 2015
Marin
Independent Journal
By Janis
Mara
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