Editorial: Alabama's AYP grade - WSFA.com: News Weather and Sports for Montgomery, AL.

Editorial: Alabama's AYP grade

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By Mark Wilder - email

  • Editorials

  • Thursday, May 16 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-16 23:20:04 GMT
    In my editorial on Tuesday I chided our legislators for being the last state to pass a no-brainer  bill legalizing home brewing.  Today I want to challenge them to be one of the first states to pass another no-brainer;
    In my editorial on Tuesday I chided our legislators for being the last state to pass a no-brainer  bill legalizing home brewing.  Today I want to challenge them to be one of the first states to pass another no-brainer;

  • Tuesday, May 14 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-14 23:20:07 GMT
    Kudos, or perhaps, cheers to the Alabama Legislature for passing HB9, the home brewing bill. Legalized home brewing may not be up there with education reform or prison funding, but it was overdue. 
    Kudos, or perhaps, cheers to the Alabama Legislature for passing HB9, the home brewing bill. Legalized home brewing may not be up there with education reform or prison funding, but it was overdue. 

  • Thursday, May 9 2013 7:20 PM EDT2013-05-09 23:20:06 GMT
    What was the old Pan-Am gas station at the corner of Bibb and Coosa is now no longer.  Last weekend that landmark was demolished with nothing remaining where it once stood other than the outline of a foundation. What
    What was the old Pan-Am gas station at the corner of Bibb and Coosa is now no longer.  Last weekend that landmark was demolished with nothing remaining where it once stood other than the outline of a foundation. What
    •   
MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -

On Monday Alabama  schools' Adequate Yearly Progress report came out.  49 state school systems including 377 schools did not make AYP this year.

While many people agree that AYP has brought improvement to schools, some have criticized the program as rigid and unrealistic.  Like it or not, it is in place and will be until at least 2014.

It is only one type of report card and it is "pass or fail" with nothing in between.  We don't grade our students solely on pass or fail and we shouldn't grade our schools solely that way either.

Many improvements have been made in the last year, especially in River Region schools.  We should celebrate those successes and build on them.

More concerning is that when schools don't meet AYP goals they will have to apply federal funds to the underachieving segments or programs.  That's fine, but how do we fund the segments and programs from which those federal dollars are taken?

It always comes back to the same issue.  If we can't achieve our education goals with current resources, we need to either spend more money on education, or re-design our school to be more efficient.

Because in a "pass or fail" world, pass is the only acceptable option.

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