Is it really “poisonous” for parents to compare student test scores in their local school district to test results in other districts across the state?

I don’t think so. But then, I’m not a credentialed education professional with advanced degrees, earning $80K or $90K toiling in the government school monopoly swamp.

The Ellsworth American’s front-page story (November 22, 2018), “Student test results take a downturn,” featured a cascade of excuses from administrators for the failure of Maine’s K-12 public schools to provide a quality education to Maine kids. Some of the excuse-making was overtly hostile to parents having any kind of yardstick to use in measuring student achievement.

In my estimation, the most condescending remarks came from Julie Meltzer, director of curriculum, assessment and instruction for the Mount Desert Island Regional School System. She said, “You can only compare yourself to yourself. I really think this atmosphere of comparing schools across towns is poisonous. I don’t think it helps towns to understand this at all.”

So how will that work in practice, in the real world after graduation?

When an academically unprepared high-school graduate applies to one of Maine’s community colleges and finds that she needs to take remedial courses in math and science before she is ready for entry-level college work, what then? Should she insist that she can only be compared to herself, and not measured by some arbitrary entrance exam?

Advertisement

Although it’s rarely reported in Maine’s news media outlets, about half of Maine high-school graduates who apply for admission to community colleges are in this predicament. They have to take remedial courses. We and they are paying twice for the same education.

But the administrators interviewed by the Ellsworth American seem to be more interested in making excuses for sub-par student performance than in taking some responsibility for the problem. Jim Boothby, superintendent for RSU 25 in Bucksport, cautioned against reading too much into the dismal numbers. He said the test results are not very helpful because of the two-year time lag in receiving the results from the state.

But poor performance numbers are nothing new.

Thirty years (and hundreds of million of dollars) ago, the state board of education reported that only 52% of Maine 11th graders could calculate the 5 percent sales tax on a $7,800 purchase.

For decades, Maine’s K-12 student enrollment has been in decline, while spending on education goes up and up year after year. We’re spending lots more money to educate fewer students. In fact, the Legislature just dumped another $162 million into the public schools in the last budget. I’m sure many readers will be surprised to learn that under the eight years of the LePage administration, state spending on education increased by a whopping one billion dollars.

Meanwhile, student achievement has been stagnant or in decline for a long time. It’s shocking that roughly half of Maine students were already below grade-level in literacy and math proficiency. The latest test results show a decline from that very low benchmark. But we’re supposed to keep shoveling tax dollars into this profoundly dysfunctional system, and hope for the best.

Advertisement

The administrators whose comments were quoted in the story cited a whole host of reasons for failing schools, but never came close to identifying the most obvious root cause: lack of competition. Public schools are de facto monopolies by virtue of the fact that while parents are allowed to opt their children out, parents are still stuck with the tax bill to support government schools. If parents want out, they are forced to pay twice for education.

Under these circumstances, local school districts have no compelling financial incentive to offer quality education. Administrators are free to negotiate contracts with the local teachers’ union that provide nearly bullet-proof job security to mediocre teachers. And curriculum coordinators are empowered to wallow in every feel-good fad that comes down the pike, from Common Core to Social Emotional Learning. Everyone gets a trophy, and an “A” in self-esteem.

Instead of continuing down this path, let’s empower parents to choose what’s best for their school-age children. Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) allow parents to withdraw their children from government schools and receive a deposit of public funds into government-authorized savings accounts with restricted, but multiple uses. Those funds can cover private school tuition and fees, online learning programs, home school materials, private tutoring, etc.

When education dollars begin to follow the student, public schools will have to offer something that parents are willing to pay for.

It’s long past time for Maine to embrace school choice.

Lawrence E. Lockman, R-Amherst, is serving his fourth term in the Maine House of Representatives, District 137. He is co-founder and President of the populist/conservative non-profit Maine First Project. He may be reached at larrylockman22@gmail.com.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.