| Germantown Times |
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| Germantown Central School District |
| Taconic Hills Central School District |
| Red Hook Central School District |
The average for English Language Arts for grades 3 to 8 is 69% for Germantown; 80% for Red Hook; and 55% for Taconic Hills. That is the percent scoring at or above Level 3, the state standard for proficiency. Similarly, Germantown's 76% in Mathematics is between Red Hook's 82% and Taconic's 56% In cohort scores, students who entered high school in 2002 are tracked as a group. In this instance, Taconic Hills did better than Germantown. Seventy-three percent of the 2002 cohort achieved Level 3 compared to 69% for Germantown and 82% for Red Hook. This is a reasonably good measure of improvement over time. What's a parent to do? Foremost is to ask yourself if you are satisfied with your child's performance in school; it is the most important fact. Then, since most of us can't move readily to higher-scoring districts, start a discussion with school officials on what can be done to improve scores. You will probably find that teacher's have some pretty good ideas on what parents can do. The burden can't be entirely on the school. However, these numbers are indicators of school performance. Teachers and administrators are the paid professionals; hold their feet to the fire. For detailed information on the schools go to Germantown, Red Hook, or Taconic. |
consuming and involved process. I hope that the site will continue to be all that you envision; a useful and civil information exchange. Although I do pay attention to how well Germantown is doing in comparison to other schools, I do tend to pay more attention to how my kids fare there. I do feel that the article did not show that Germantown Central School has been improving over the years, most recently moving from a school in need of improvement (in 2003-04 for Math 8 scores) to a school in good standing one year later, where they have remained. I have also seen the school make efforts to offer more advanced placement courses (at both the school campus and at Columbia Greene Community College) when faced with rising mandates by the state regarding special ed but nothing for gifted students. Maybe it’s my “glass half full” thinking but I would have liked to see more information on what Germantown has done to improve rather than comparing us to other districts. A point of your article that I heartily agree with is that the burden can’t be entirely on the school. I can say with certainty that the success of our kids is greatly enhanced by parental involvement. Unfortunately that involvement is not the norm (in most districts) and without it, the effectiveness of teachers and administrators is lessened. Our students would be more successful if parents/families got involved with school and community activities, helping to advance the status quo, and not speaking out only when things don’t go as they like.
A Parent |
| Parent Response |