Audit flags
problems at
Hawaii’s schoolsState teams will go to the 25 most
troubled schools to try to helpTroubled schools
External auditors have helped identify the 25 most troubled public schools in Hawaii, and state intervention teams will be sent to those campuses to try to lift student performance, Superintendent Pat Hamamoto announced yesterday.
The most common roadblocks to success identified by the auditors were inconsistent curriculum and use of standards, lack of parental involvement and insufficient data analysis. But lack of administrative support, weak leadership and teacher turnover were also highlighted as problems.
"Having a third-party independent view helps us to better assess what we're doing," Hamamoto said in presenting a summary of the audit's findings to the Board of Education. "It has provided us with a very candid look at where we are and the things we need to do."
PriceWaterhouseCoopers audited 47 schools that had failed to reach federal academic standards for at least four years, in an effort to uncover the reasons and recommend changes. Of those, 25 schools are being targeted for intervention, mostly in Leeward Oahu and on the Big Island.
"All of the schools we reviewed had very hard workers who are doing a lot of good things," said Patrick Oki, PriceWaterhouseCoopers senior project manager. "They just need the resources to improve."
Oki said the chief recommendations for improvement are staff training to help schools teach to standards, and better data analysis and classroom assessments to objectively guide efforts to improve. Each school will receive an individual report with a recipe for improvement based on its unique circumstances. Those reports are being distributed to the schools and are not yet publicly available.
"There's no single reason why a school failed," Hamamoto said. "It's really a combination of factors."
The schools are being assessed as part of the No Child Left Behind Act, which requires schools that consistently miss federal academic benchmarks to make major changes, including possibly replacing staff. But Hamamoto said this audit is the first time the causes have been clearly identified, and school staff must be given a chance to change in response.
"People are already saying, 'You've got to go in and remove the principal because the audit says the management may be weak,'" she said. "We believe in due process. It's part of American culture; it's also part of the legal framework. Once you know what the problem is, you have an opportunity to correct. Everyone from the superintendent's office to the school is now on notice."
The intervention teams will target assistance based on needs at each school, whether it be reading resource teachers or leadership training. The teams will be made up of one external expert, one from the school's complex area office and one from the school.
The audit also pointed to difficulties schools have in handling the growing numbers of students in special education and learning English as a second language. Transience of the student population was also identified as a problem at several Waianae schools.
Board member Denise Matsumoto expressed frustration that the schools have lacked resources to address some of the problems highlighted in the audit.
"The schools are so understaffed," she said. "We've asked for professional development moneys in the budget for years, and we haven't received it."
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Troubled schools
These 25 low-performing schools will get help from state intervention teams in hopes of lifting student achievement:
>> Aiea Elementary
>> Hana High & Elementary
>> Hauula Elementary
>> Kahakai Elementary
>> Kahaluu Elementary
>> Kalanianaole Elementary & Intermediate
>> Kamaile Elementary
>> Kau High/Pahala Elementary
>> Kealakehe Intermediate
>> Keaukaha Elementary
>> Keeau Middle
>> Laupahoehoe High & Elementary
>> Leihoku Elementary
>> Maili Elementary
>> Makaha Elementary
>> Naalehu Elementary & Intermediate
>> Nanakuli Elementary
>> Nanakuli High & Intermediate
>> Palolo Elementary
>> Wahiawa Elementary
>> Waianae Elementary
>> Waianae Intermediate
>> Waimea Elementary
>> Waipahu Elementary
>> Waimanalo Elementary & Intermediate
State Department of Education
