Hopkins Also Has 'Achievement Gap' Between White and Minority Students

Although Hopkins has historically exceeded state testing averages, the district is still combating an “achievement gap” between white and minority students that echoes a similar gap seen in state results released Tuesday.

“We really want all of our students to be ready for college and career,” said Diane Schimelpfenig, the district’s director of teaching, learning, and assessment.

Statewide results

The Minnesota Department of Education released the 2011 statewide Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) scores for the 10th grade reading and 11th grade math tests.

The number of students who tested proficient on the exams grew marginally this year, but the results show that significant achievement gaps remain between white students and students of color across the state.

The largest gap could be seen in math—where Asian/Pacific Islander students trailed by 13 points, Hispanic students trailed by 33 points and black students trailed by 39 points.

“It’s hard to cheer when only half of kids are scoring proficient in math, and only 17 percent of black kids are scoring proficient, despite a four percentage point gain [over last year],” Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius wrote in a press release.

Just 56 percent of white students tested proficient in math.

“When fewer than half of our students are proficient on math standards that have been in place since 2003, we need to be doing something different,” Cassellius wrote.

The local level

MCA results for individual districts and schools won’t be released until August. Last year, Hopkins had 75 percent of 10th graders proficient in reading and 60 percent 11th graders proficient in math. That same year, the statewide average was 75 percent for reading and 43 percent for math.

Black students in Hopkins last year were nearly at the statewide average in math. But their 42 percent proficiency rate was just over half the 83 percent rate for white students in Hopkins.

“We continue to face an achievement gap,” Schimelpfenig said. “It’s something we continue to work on.”

The district has several programs targeted at closing this gap, which is a recurring topic at school board meetings.

• The district launched a “Pre-K Readiness” pilot program at to prepare at-risk students for success before they start kindergarten. It will launch the same program at in the 2011-2012 school year.
• The district’s “Response to Intervention” program provides extra math and reading support to elementary school students.
• In junior and senior high, the AVID program helps students who come from families without a long tradition of attending college.

Both the Pre-K Readiness and Response to Intervention programs were individually voted on as part of this year’s budget. The board also specifically signed off on money for an elementary AVID program, although that program is different from the junior and senior high programs of the same name.

Schimelpfenig noted that none of those programs specifically target minorities. The school district helps students based on what will benefit them as individuals—not based on their socioeconomic status, race or time in the district.

“Our programs always reflect what we believe is best for our students,” she said.

High stakes

MCA scores are also important because they’re used under the federal No Child Left Behind Act to determine whether a school has made “Adequate Yearly Progress” (AYP). If districts and schools receiving Title I funding fail to meet AYP goals for two or more consecutive years, they are classified as “in need of improvement” and face a battery of potential consequences. Corrective action may include a complete restructuring of the school, the replacement of school staff or the implementation of a new curriculum.

Hopkins has four school that missed AYP targets in at least one area—Eisenhower, and Alice Smith and elementary schools. Alice Smith and L.H. Tanglen both met the standards last year but must achieve those targets two years in a row to get off AYP status.

(Click on the PDFs to the right for detailed MCA reports.)

10th Grade Reading Profiency

11th Grade Math Proficiency