You wasted your time in the "Zone"

Posted on Fri, Jun. 27, 2008

Report: Dade school zone initiative ineffective

BY KATHLEEN McGRORY

A school district analysis of the School Improvement Zone -- the $100 million experiment to turn around chronically underachieving schools -- concluded that the investment generated few noteworthy achievements in student performance during its first year of operation.
The report, obtained Wednesday by The Miami Herald, was less than flattering.

While many teachers reported a renewed sense of pride in their schools, researchers in the district's Office of Program Evaluation noted ''exhaustion, burnout and frustration'' among faculty, students and parents.

What's more, 'the impact of the Zone program on the students' academic achievement after one year of operation [appeared] to be small,'' researchers wrote.

Superintendent Rudy Crew acknowledged some of the program's early flaws Wednesday, but said that ultimately, the Zone was worth the investment. He said the results over the latter two years of the three-year initiative were positive.

''It makes sense that a big program like this would have a rough start,'' Crew said. ``It really takes a longer period of time to make changes on this scale.''

School Board member Ana Rivas Logan was among the few board members who had read the report Wednesday.

''The superintendent keeps saying that it worked,'' she said. ``Where is it written that it was a success? According to this report, it was a total flop.''

Crew launched the Zone initiative in 2004. It included 39 schools, each chosen on the basis of low academic performance. The schools implemented extended school days and years, and stepped up their efforts to improve literacy.

SIGNATURE PROGRAM

Crew's signature program wrapped up its third and final year this month.

The analysis of the first year was completed in December 2007. Crew, however, did not bring it to the School Board. Instead, he said Wednesday he had planned to package the report with other evaluations of the Zone project.

''I have a number of reports on the Zone,'' he said. ``I want to bring them to the board as one complete package once we finish the budgeting process.''

The central focus of the study was student achievement. To that end, researchers looked at student scores on the reading, mathematics and writing portions of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

The study compared the 39 schools in the Zone to a control group of 39 schools. The schools in the control group had similar percentages of black students, English-language learners and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, an indicator of poverty. The study also took into account demographic data, climate surveys, surveys of students, parents and staff, and interviews with administrators.

While students in the Zone made ''significant growth'' in reading at each grade level, the annual rate of growth among students in the control group frequently exceeded the rate of growth among students in the Zone.

Only eighth-graders in the Zone made stronger gains in reading than their counterparts in the control group, according to the study.

On the math exams, students in the Zone improved at the same rate as those in the control group.

''Thus, this analysis does not indicate that the program is effective at increasing mathematics achievement at any grade,'' researchers wrote.

Beyond student achievement, the study looked at attitudes among faculty and staff.

Administrators in the Zone said they were pleased by the support they received from the district. Researchers also noted that a majority of teachers were ``working collaboratively, taking pride in their schools, and having high expectations for their students.''

But the study found also found ''substantial dissatisfaction'' stemming from exhaustion, burnout and frustration. 'Long hours and heavy workload repeatedly made the completion of the teachers' mandated professional development unexpectedly burdensome,'' researchers wrote.

Fewer than half the teachers surveyed said morale was high at their schools.

The authors of the study also said the nature of the professional development programs might not have been enough ``to meet the needs of Zone teachers.''

The researchers ultimately concluded that the district had spent considerable effort making sure the elements of the Zone program were in place. But the effective use of those resources varied widely among the schools.

''The impact of the program after its first year of implementation appear to be small, although outcomes may improve over time,'' researchers wrote.

ZONE WEAKNESSES

Speaking to reporters, Crew has touted the success of the Zone. But while discussing this specific report Wednesday, he acknowledged some of the Zone's weaknesses. ''To a certain degree, I think people did experience burnout,'' he said.

Crew said district officials tried to correct for some of the program's early shortcomings. ''We made many adjustments along the way, in terms of how programs were implemented,'' he said.

Crew said he is waiting for the data on academic achievement, attendance and disciplinary issues for all three years before he makes his final report to the School Board. He isn't likely to do so before the board adopts a budget for the 2008-09 school year, he said.

Crew believes the numbers will have improved significantly from the first year.

Logan is skeptical.

''We spent $100 million and it didn't do anything,'' Logan said. ``To me, that's a complete failure.''

Let's see. Since the Superintendent took over the "F" schools have incereased almost tenfold. The $100 million he spent on the zone has shown to be a waste of money, and he has to dip into the reserves to balance his budget. How much could we actually save if he simply went away.