Bethel School Board Focuses on Standards
By Chris Costanzo

The Bethel School Board began its new schedule of less frequent but longer meetings Monday, resulting in a four-hour Bethel school meeting mostly devoted to academic policies.

Between now and the next school board meeting in September, school administrators will study suggestions regarding an enrichment program in the elementary grades, advance placement instruction in the high school, and the possibility of establishing a grading system that would reflect the comparative level of difficulty of specific courses.

Bethel Principal Andrew West provided answers to very detailed questions from the board. These included the methods of assessing a student's academic level and progress, the implementation of the educational support system through parental consultation, referrals and remedial services, attendance criteria, educational record keeping, and problems regarding those with limited English proficiency.

Much time was spent discussing a number of standardized tests that are administered to the students throughout their academic years. West noted that Bethel scored particularly well on those tests, and in most cases exceeded state-wide averages. He also provided a chart showing that Bethel ranks with the highest among 12 area schools in reading, writing, and math.

However, school board chair David Allen pointed out that even if the tests showed that, in reading for example, about 63% of the students met or exceeded state standards, there are still 37% of the students who do not meet the standards. He asked the school administrators to outline the goals and plans for increasing student achievement in such areas.

He also expressed interest in measuring student achievement in such areas as history, art and science, which currently are not tested against state-wide standards.

Supt. Tim Mock noted that many of the students who did not meet tested standards were, nevertheless, in the category of "nearly" meeting them, so the percentage of those who failed to meet the standards was not as serious as it might seem at first glance.

In view of the quick feedback from some of the newer testing methods, and the expectation that such tests may be given more frequently in the future, the school will now be able to respond relatively quickly to gaps and deficiencies that the tests might uncover, he said. Principal West said that periodic meetings occur among school staff to formulate and modify their educational "action plan" in this regard.

The school administrators also noted that standardized tests in fields besides reading, writing and math will soon be available.

Enrichment

School board member Dietre Feeney asked about enrichment programs for higher achieving students. It was noted that qualified high school students can take courses at Vermont Technical College or at Dartmouth, and that some colleges will accept credit for such courses. There are, however, no formal advanced placement courses at Whitcomb High School. At the request of the school board, Supt. Mock said that school administration would study the possibility of working with neighboring school districts that already offer advanced placement to provide such instruction to Bethel students. The matter will be discussed at the next school board meeting in September.

The question of an enrichment program for students in the elementary grades was raised by school board member Kristin LaFramboise. Such a program, as envisioned by LaFramboise, would be formally structured rather than an informal effort by teachers to give better attention to higher achieving students. It was decided that school management would study the possibility of a structured enrichment program for the lower graves, and again submit recommendations for discussion at the September meeting.

Grade Weighting

Whitcomb High School senior Maya Robinson, who sits with the school board as a non-voting member, raised the possibility of "grade weighting." A grade weighing evaluation system would reflect not only a student's achievement in a course but also take into consideration the course's level of difficulty.

Without grade weighting, she noted, the results of a student's performance can be misleading by allowing some students to tally up good grades by selecting easy "gut" courses, to the competitive disadvantage of students who elect more difficult courses where they might not score as well.

Robinson noted that Whitcomb is one of the few schools in Vermont that doesn't have a grade weighing system, and that it's a concern that she hears frequently from fellow students.

Accordingly, the school board asked school administrators to consider the possibility of grade weighing in Bethel, to be added to their findings and recommendations in September.