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This was in today's (October 30, 2016) Newsday and is one of many rubrics by which the top LI public schools might be ranked.
"High Scoring Districts tend to be clustered along the North Shore in Nassau County and western Suffolk. This applies to most districts with test-achievement ratios of 3.00 or better — meaning that three or more exams were passed last year, proportionately speaking, for every senior enrolled. Eleven districts in Nassau and two in Suffolk meet that criterion. They are, in descending order: Jericho, Manhasset, Roslyn, East Williston, Great Neck, Rockville Centre, Cold Spring Harbor, Syosset, Locust Valley, Garden City, Port Washington, Herricks and Harborfields.
- IMHO this is significant in that achievement and participation on the exams - rather than mere participation in the exams - was measured to calculate the above list. Some districts have pumped up the AP participation rate without showing much achievement. Not these schools - and not this 13-school list.
- Ward Melville was the only Long Island district not to provide the figures necessary to calculate a ratio/score/rank
- Of course this has nothing to do with which district would be best for your particular child and has nothing to do with evaluating causality such as socioeconomic factors, parental involvement, etc etc.
Why WMHS Does Not Participate in Media’s So-Called “Rankings”
Ward Melville High School and district administration do not believe in these so-called rankings. We do not provide the information to the creators of these rankings because we believe they do not capture the complete picture of a school.
The rankings are based primarily on a simplistic formula, namely, the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school. From that the challenge index is set and a rank is determined. While this may be a good idea to sell newspapers or magazines, it is a poor way to “rank” high schools. Most educators understand that the “best” high schools are educational institutions that embrace all of their students as they provide a rich educational experience both in and out of the classroom. Clearly, challenging students to take a rigorous schedule is one important defining criterion; making it the sole criterion is simply foolish. Furthermore, Ward Melville High School does not require students taking an AP course to actually sit for the exam.
As you may know, Ward Melville High School, in addition to offering many AP courses, also offers many college-level courses through such institutions as Stony Brook, Syracuse, Adelphi, Farmingdale, Suffolk County Community College, and Long Island University. Ward Melville High School has hundreds of students taking college credit-bearing courses each year. The rankings do not take these courses into consideration. Moreover, Ward Melville High School offers a plethora of extracurricular and sport activities. Our students are heavily involved in music, theater, and the fine arts. We have multiple theatrical performances, concerts, art and technology shows each school year. This past school year, every one of our athletic teams, save one, was recognized by New York State as a Scholar-Athlete Team. I challenge people to find many schools with the quantity and quality of our offerings. Are these factors taken into “ranking” considerations? No. Nor do they take into consideration our special education and gifted programs. We are well-known for the strength of our special education programs and our nationally recognized InSTAR and science programs. Again, the rankings do not take any of this into consideration.
Rankings do not demonstrate how students perform. They do not take our outstanding graduation rates into consideration and they certainly do not measure the diversity of our programs and how we meet the diverse needs of our students. Our teachers, like many other teachers from all over the country, are an extraordinarily dedicated group of professionals that are passionate about what they do and care deeply about our students.
So, in my opinion and in the opinion of many others, Ward Melville High School is an outstanding school offering our students a rich and vibrant education. If rankings were able to capture this spirit, then perhaps we would submit data. We are a community of learners and we are more than a number.
Alan L. Baum, J.D.
Principal
Ward Melville High School
Three Village Central School District
While I admire his intent, classic again... "Don't look at my SAT, GRE, GMAT scores. Look at how well rounded I am and how much I made at the cub scout bake sale." Does he advise his college applicants to say "don't worry, you don't need to see my test scores, just see how well rounded I am." Admissions Dept: "Thank you, next applicant, please!"
THIS from another supreme educator on our island of snowflake academia.
Pretty sure the colleges want those test scores, bro! And yeah, YOU are judged by them as well!
While I admire his intent, classic again... "Don't look at my SAT, GRE, GMAT scores. Look at how well rounded I am and how much I made at the cub scout bake sale." Does he advise his college applicants to say "don't worry, you don't need to see my test scores, just see how well rounded I am." Admissions Dept: "Thank you, next applicant, please!"
THIS from another supreme educator on our island of snowflake academia.
Pretty sure the colleges want those test scores, bro! And yeah, YOU are judged by them as well!
The letter is with regard to abstaining from supplying the media with results as the media does not take all aspects of the education into account. My 'baby' is taking college level classes and AP; the rankings won't reflect the college courses she has completed or that are in progress. If she were to scale back and take all AP classes, by the media's calculations that would boost rankings as opposed to the college level coursework she is taking. It's backwards. Another thing which has been brought up in the past is that some of these rankings factor in 'diversity'. One of the big magazine rankings uses diversity as its 2nd qualifier.
The colleges receive all the scores necessary; that's all that truly matters.
The letter is with regard to abstaining from supplying the media with results as the media does not take all aspects of the education into account. My 'baby' is taking college level classes and AP; the rankings won't reflect the college courses she has completed or that are in progress. If she were to scale back and take all AP classes, by the media's calculations that would boost rankings as opposed to the college level coursework she is taking. It's backwards. Another thing which has been brought up in the past is that some of these rankings factor in 'diversity'. One of the big magazine rankings uses diversity as its 2nd qualifier.
The colleges receive all the scores necessary; that's all that truly matters.
You're talking about the student's scores, not the SCHOOL's ranking. The school doesn't supply the scores to avoid transparency. Period. If they were tops of the pops, guarantee he'd be TOUTING the scores to whoever will listen! Jericho will NEVER miss submitting scores to "media" because it's a benefit to be ranked #1 when budget season comes around.
His letter does not address the real factor...HOW many AP/IB offerings does the school provide? THAT is the gist of it and where the competition is. Scores and participation. Jericho kids can take 4 per kid because they offer it and it drives competition. My district offers far fewer options so can never be ranked nearly as high. Yet they STILL managed to submit scores.
Again, I admire the Principal's "principled" take on it, but it still sounds like a clever cop-out. like Trump's tax returns! I'm sure he's a "well rounded businessman with fine intangible qualities"...but I'd like to see the returns for myself.
You're talking about the student's scores, not the SCHOOL's ranking. The school doesn't supply the scores to avoid transparency. Period. If they were tops of the pops, guarantee he'd be TOUTING the scores to whoever will listen! Jericho will NEVER miss submitting scores to "media" because it's a benefit to be ranked #1 when budget season comes around.
His letter does not address the real factor...HOW many AP/IB offerings does the school provide? THAT is the gist of it and where the competition is. Scores and participation. Jericho kids can take 4 per kid because they offer it and it drives competition. My district offers far fewer options so can never be ranked nearly as high. Yet they STILL managed to submit scores.
Again, I admire the Principal's "principled" take on it, but it still sounds like a clever cop-out. like Trump's tax returns! I'm sure he's a "well rounded businessman with fine intangible qualities"...but I'd like to see the returns for myself.
The students scores are used to create the school rankings.
Remember that 'diversity' I mentioned? Jericho is very diverse; in 2015 it was only 49% white compared with Ward Melville which is 85%
Using the most complete data I could find: Jericho HS offered (2016) 22 AP courses, WM (2016) 23 AP courses. (FYI: There are a total of 36 AP exams offered by the College Board). In terms of student body, Jericho's graduating classes are much smaller with 286 graduating in 2016 compared with 624 at WM.
According to the Jericho profile 259 students had completed AP courses representing 91% of Jericho students. There was no number listed on the WM profile. Completing AP courses =/= taking AP exams. (A student can opt to take a school administered exam forgoing AP credit.)
As for the students who had taken AP Exams, the following numbers received honors:
AP Scholars: J - 31; WM - 108
AP Scholar with Honor: J - 48; WM - 60
AP Scholar with Distinction: J - 48; WM - 125 National AP Scholar: J - 4; WM - 30
Criteria for these awards: AP Scholar: Granted to students who receive scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP Exams AP Scholar with Honor: Granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams AP Scholar with Distinction: Granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams National AP Scholar: Granted to students in the United States who receive an average score of at least 4 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 4 or higher on eight or more of these exams
I find it interesting that only 4 of Jericho's students received National AP Scholar. Could it be that these students are being corralled into AP courses for school recognition? How many of Jericho's Asian students are bilingual and easily pass the Chinese Language and Culture AP Exam?
Just going by the minimums for each level of criteria, WM has at least 1,429 exams taken by that year's graduating seniors compared with at least 557 by Jericho's graduating seniors.
Granted, there's more money and there are more tiger mothers at Jericho, but when push comes to shove, WM didn't fare poorly. Jericho is a LI powerhouse, always has been. A school with a small student body which almost half Asian coupled with very wealthy parents and minimal economically disadvantaged students will excel over others.
It doesn't bother me that Dr. Baum doesn't release the figures. My child's scores are in line with her Jericho peers, and her college applications are going to many of the same schools to which they are applying. All that matters in the long run are that they attend colleges or universities which will allow them to grow and succeed in life.
Last edited by OhBeeHave; 10-31-2016 at 02:03 PM..
The students scores are used to create the school rankings.
Remember that 'diversity' I mentioned? Jericho is very diverse; in 2015 it was only 49% white compared with Ward Melville which is 85%
Using the most complete data I could find: Jericho HS offered (2016) 22 AP courses, WM (2016) 23 AP courses. In terms of student body, Jericho's graduating classes are much smaller with 286 graduating in 2016 compared with 624 at WM.
According to the Jericho profile 259 students had completed AP courses representing 91% of Jericho students. There was no number listed on the WM profile. Completing AP courses =/= taking AP exams. (A student can opt to take a school administered exam forgoing AP credit.)
As for the students who had taken AP Exams, the following numbers received honors:
AP Scholars: J - 31; WM - 108
AP Scholar with Honor: J - 48; WM - 60
AP Scholar with Distinction: J - 48; WM - 125 National AP Scholar: J - 4; WM - 30
Criteria for these awards: AP Scholar: Granted to students who receive scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP Exams AP Scholar with Honor: Granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams AP Scholar with Distinction: Granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams National AP Scholar: Granted to students in the United States who receive an average score of at least 4 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 4 or higher on eight or more of these exams
I find it interesting that only 4 of Jericho's students received National AP Scholar. Could it be that these students are being corralled into AP courses for school recognition?
Just going by the minimums for each level of criteria, WM has at least 1,429 exams taken by that year's graduating seniors compared with at least 557 by Jericho's graduating seniors.
Granted, there's more money and there are more tiger mothers at Jericho, but when push comes to shove, WM didn't fare poorly. Jericho is a LI powerhouse, always has been. A school with a small student body which almost half Asian coupled with very wealthy parents and minimal economically disadvantaged students will excel over others.
It doesn't bother me that Dr. Baum doesn't release the figures. My child's scores are in line with her Jericho peers, and her college applications are going to many of the same schools to which they are applying. All that matters in the long run are that they attend colleges or universities which will allow them to grow and succeed in life.
Ok, I'll respectfully defer to your research...but it doesn't seem to jibe with the Newsday article which stated Jericho's AP offerings as more, coupled with Principal Baum's contention that WM has many alternate college level offerings thru _____ colleges (I'd expect him to claim an equal or greater # than the other districts when defending his position...maybe he should hire you). Frankly I don't care much about the particulars and they're all fine schools (with overpaid teachers) to me. My district is weak on AP offerings and pulled a 1.25 score (compared to the big guy's 4+) and the WM Principal seems forthright and reasonable.
My point is more to the hypocritical trend for administrators to love performance metrics for kids, not so much for themselves. I still contend, if their metrics matched your metrics, they'd be posted.
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