Isle parents stick
with underachieving
schoolsRelatively few use the No Child
Left Behind Act to move kids into
better-performing classrooms
Isabel Infante said she knows she could transfer her daughter from Kalihi-Kai elementary school, which is labeled as one of the state's low performers, to a better-ranked public school. But she's not interested.
"I don't think so," she said, as she collected her ponytailed first-grader after school last week. "We're close over here, walking distance from school. My son also went here. They have good training in reading and math."
Her daughter, Tyrah Mae, overhearing the conversation, seconded the sentiment. "I no like leave this school," she said, a hint of unease in her voice.
Judging from the numbers, the Infantes are not alone in their feelings. The federal No Child Left Behind Act gives parents the option to pull their children out of schools labeled as "needing improvement" because of low test scores. Although 46,492 Hawaii students were eligible to transfer, only 147 did so for this school year.
That's not because there wasn't room elsewhere. While only a few students used No Child Left Behind transfers to get to a "better" school, nearly 8,000 others switched schools last fall for other reasons. That's roughly the same number as usual under the state's long-standing "geographic exception" policy, which allows students to choose their public school if space is available.
A new round of transfer applications is under way this month for the next school year, with a March 1 deadline. Children in schools labeled as "needing improvement" get top priority in such geographic exception requests, with poor children who have the lowest grades getting first crack at available spaces. Principals in those schools have sent letters home explaining the transfer option.
While the number of such No Child Left Behind transfers in Hawaii grew to 147 in 2003-2004 from 21 in 2002-2003, the first year the law took effect, the totals still represent a minuscule fraction of the potential. The identity of those students is kept confidential.
DEAN SENSUI / DSENSUI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Third-grader Hannah Leggett, her brother Noah, who is in kindergarten, and her mother, Cathy, make paper leis in Ewa Beach Elementary's library.
"What we're finding in all honesty is that families really want to remain in their home school community," said Butch Adams, an educational specialist for the Department of Education. "That's the neighborhood they live in, that's the children next door that they play with, that's the area where their sports and extracurricular activities are."
Nationally, just 2 percent of eligible students transferred from "low-performing" schools for the 2003-2004 school year, according to the Washington, D.C.-based Center on Education Policy, which surveyed 47 states. The study found that families preferred to take advantage of tutoring, also offered as part of the No Child Left Behind law, rather than leave their neighborhood.
In Hawaii last year, 84 of the state's 283 schools fell into the "needing improvement" category, all of them high-poverty schools. Federal money is available to pay for transportation for students transferring from those schools, including bus fare or mileage reimbursement, but little has been used, Adams said.
"It really hasn't been the lowest-performing students that have been asking for geographic exceptions," Adams said. "It's still the same kids that are coming from higher socioeconomic families, who would put in for a GE transfer anyway." Those "regular GE" students, who switch schools for family reasons or to attend a special program, are responsible for their transportation.
For some students in Hawaii, moving to a higher-performing school isn't practical. All five public schools on the island of Molokai, for example, are labeled "needing improvement," so their students are offered only tutoring, not transfers.
Big Island students also face geographic hurdles because schools are spread out, and Oahu students along the coast from Waianae to Nanakuli would need to commute to Kapolei to reach a higher-performing school. Low-income families, in general, tend to face more logistical challenges.
Emma Wallace, a single parent whose son Taylor attends Kalihi-Kai School, said moving him to a different school would be too much hassle since she doesn't have a car -- and she wouldn't want to, anyway.
"The teacher he has is really good. I wouldn't transfer him in the first place," she said before corralling the rambunctious third-grader in the school yard. "Second, it's more convenient here. I don't drive. I catch the bus."
Some parents flatly reject the labels the federal government has put on their schools. Cathy Leggett, who has lived in Ewa Beach for 41 years, says students should transfer into Ewa Beach Elementary School, not out of it, even if it is labeled "needs improvement."
"I would never transfer out of this school," said Leggett, whose daughter Hannah is in third grade, son Noah is in kindergarten and son Jason graduated from the school. "Our kids have gone so far."
Noah, for instance, is already reading story books and writing directions for how to make pancakes or how to ride a scooter, she said, and enjoys hands-on learning in science and math.
Schools are categorized as "needing improvement" when math or reading test scores fall short of targets for two straight years. The benchmarks are the same for all schools in the state, and all students at a school, regardless of their backgrounds.
After missing the targets a couple of times, Ewa Beach Elementary met them last year, but it must do so again this year to get off the "needs improvement" list. The school is in its sixth year of the America's Choice program, which sets clear standards, assesses students regularly and offers specific teaching strategies.
"It's really unfortunate that they're categorized because of the law," Leggett said. "I tell all my friends they should get a GE to go here. It's remarkable, our school."
In Waimanalo, Daien Kaneshiro is just as loyal to her daughter's school, Pope Elementary, despite the fact that its test scores have fallen short for several years.
"I think the teachers and staff do a fabulous job at Pope School," she said. "I'm not concerned at all with No Child Left Behind because I think it's stupid, and too much time and money is wasted on it."
"The problem in Waimanalo is that it's a poor district," she said. "You have a lot of single-parent households and people trying to make ends meet. You have cultural differences. There's a lot of reasons."
For students who may be shortchanged at home, without enough parental support, the school is a haven, and teachers can help fill the void if given a chance, Kaneshiro said.
"But everything has become so focused on that test score," she said. "Everything else that means anything is being let go of. You can't treat kids like that. What about art? What about love? What about being kind to people? Where does that fall into these standards?"
BACK TO TOP |
Low-income kids with lowest
scores get first crackAny student may apply to attend a public school outside of the neighborhood, on a space-available basis. Application forms are available at all public schools.
Applications must be submitted to the "home school" (the one students would normally attend) no later than March 1.
Students whose schools are identified as "needing improvement" under the No Child Left Behind Act have priority to transfer to a better-performing school on the same island, with low-income students who have the lowest grades getting first chance.
Regular "geographic exception" requests will be filled after No Child Left Behind applicants, with priority for those seeking a special program of study or those who have relatives at the receiving school.
If applicants exceed spaces available, a chance selection lottery will be held April 2, and parents will be notified of the results.
Parents must register their child at their new school within 10 working days from the postmarked date of the notification, or the space will be given to the next child.
For more information and a list of schools labeled "needing improvement," visit www.doe.k12.hi.us.
