Texas Education Agency statistics susceptible to “spin”

by Jeff Melcher

The Texas Education Agencies, (TEA) statistics from the Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS) were posted today for the 2006-07 school and fiscal year. The raw data is susceptible to "spin" for those who would not look at the entire report in context. For example:

In Lancaster ISD, Superintendent Larry Lewis hired a bunch of young black women for the district in the school year 2006-07, according to AEIS statistics. Many of the newly-hired had not yet registered their college degrees, if any, with the TEA. Overall, however, Lancaster schools ran with fewer teachers, more kids, and more administrators in the district than in prior years.

Prior year statistics remain available and can be most usefully converted to interesting information by comparing one year’s data alongside those from prior years. For example, the statistics on the number, ethnicity, experience and qualifications of teachers can be determined as below.

TEA statistics

Teachers by Ethnicity and Sex:

2006 2007

African American 228.6 238.5 up

Hispanic 16 13 down

White 128.6 113.5 down

Native American 2 1 down

Asian/Pacific Islander 1 0 down

Males 104.2 88.5 down

Females 272 277.5 up

Total 376.2 366 down

Professional Staff: 457.4 451.8 down

Teachers 376.2 366 down

Professional Support 49.2 49.9 up

Campus Administration 24 26.9 up

Central Administration 8 9 up

Educational Aides: 51.6 22.6 down

Auxiliary Staff: 189.8 78.5 down

Teachers by Highest Degree Held: 2006 2007

No Degree 9 141.7 up

Bachelors 299.8 176.4 down

Masters 65.4 47.9 down

Doctorate 2 0 down

Teachers by Years of Experience:

Zero Yrs Experience 42 45.2 up

1-5 Yrs Experience 173.6 157.2 down

6-10 Yrs Experience 74.2 80.5 down

11-20 Yrs Experience 60 60.1 --

Over 20 Yrs Experience 26.4 23 down

Number of Students per Teacher: 15.5 17 up

Additional data on Teacher quality is available at TEA via the NCLB - Highly Qualified Teachers Reports. These reports also show current (2007-08) data on the numbers, experience, and certifications of all school districts' teacher quality.

Returning to the AEIS reports, districts are required by law to host public hearings on the data annually. Many districts choose to emphasize areas in which test scores, or other measures, show improvement while neglecting to discuss comparisons with other districts, state-wide averages, or year to year trends. Interested parents should prepare themselves for the public hearings by reviewing the data in the entirety well beforehand. As in the timeless Gospel so in the modern laboratory, "You will know the truth, and the truth shall set you free."

This story was submitted by a member of the Pegasus News community.

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Anonymous

estherspeaks, says:

Once again Lewis is trying to explain away these statistics by saying the numbers were keyed in wrong. It is amazing that all the district's mistakes are either the fault of Pentamation or some lowly employee that cannot type of a computer. It seems to me that a good manager would hire competent people if for no other reason than to keep him from looking incompetent.

If this administration keeps doing as it has in the last few years, the classrooms will all be holding at least 40 students in a room at secondary level and we will continue to hire administrative people who walk around giving work to the teachers so they can have purpose for their jobs. We have another grant the (TAP) grant which will pay the salary for a master and mentor teacher. They will not teach children but rather teach teachers. Wouldn't you think that after four or five years of college we should know our profession well enough not to have another level of bureaucracy to hand in reports to?

Anyone with any knowledge knows that a lower class sizes increases academic achievement - We do not need more administrators.