GUEST COLUMN: Student Success in Alaskan Schools Has Many Measures
April Smith – Policy Committee Chair, Special Education Advisory Committee Member, & Legislative Priorities Committee Member, Fairbanks North Star Borough School Board
In a room full of over 300 leaders in Alaska Education, a speaker asked what student success is. She asked anyone who thought a diploma was student success to stand. No one stood. She asked who thought “proficient” test scores were success. No movement. She asked about grades, a stir but no wave of agreement. Finally, people were asked what they did define student success as. Answers were varied but had a theme. Everyone could agree that student success looked different for every student and every community in Alaska. No one had it on their list that excellent NAEP scores were a defining measure of student success. Not a single parent, guardian, or educator I have ever met has spoken to me about their student’s standardized test scores.
During my time in Juneau this session, I was repeatedly asked about test scores. I was grilled about being “49th” and told money won’t improve test scores. I was asked if I supported accountability, but not a soul could tell me what accountability meant. There were vague platitudes about making schools “better,” “respecting parents’ rights,” and “answering for the money,” and so on. Some people who did not support increased funding wanted improved test scores. Many people simply want students to have what they need to succeed in whatever they want to pursue.
Herein lies the problem. In order to find solutions to problems, the people trying to work together must have a clear understanding of the goals. We have a disconnect between the people with the money and those with the plans. School budgets are public documents and approved by DEED. Accountability for every dollar spent is built into the budget process. I fully support transparency and accountability for funds, meaning transparent budgets that show where dollars go.
In Fairbanks, student success has many faces. They are welders, artists, college students, Marines, and moms. They are slope workers with good wages to support the families they want to start. Our success stories return to our buildings to be teachers, nurses, and custodians in our schools. Our success stories paint murals that make us smile as we drive through downtown. They entertain us, serve us our coffee, and fix our cars. The skills they attained while in our educational program set them up to engage in the world they live in in a way that works for them and their future.
Does every success story come with a 1450 SAT score? No. Does every “approaching proficient” standardized test label mean success is out of reach? Certainly not. The tests are only one measure of performance. The test does not show character or ability to do anything but test. I have challenged every person I encounter who is not supporting funding education because of NAPE scores or a perceived lack of accountability to come to a high school and ask students if they feel prepared for the future they want. Talk to our future leaders who will walk the stage in a few weeks and finally wrap their hands around that coveted diploma and ask if they got what they needed and wanted from their years with us. I think you will find the answer is yes, they did. If they didn’t, they left a lot on the table. The skills and opportunities are there for the taking. Pilot license, food service certification, CNA, and ASE Certified Mechanic, are just a few of the many licenses and certifications available in our schools. Middle college, AP classes, advanced science, math, and language are there for the taking. Music, so much music, and art and trade skills are all there for their future and ours.
I will leave the powers that be and the nay-sayers with this. If you think that NAEP scores define Alaska and its students’ success, you could not be more wrong. Turn to the success story next to you and ask them what their standardized test scores were in 4th grade, and you may just be surprised to find a “not proficient” who turned out to be a leader and a success because their education was funded and their school had support services to see them through! Alaska is unique, and we succeed beyond test scores.