Local scores on SAT decline

let's see, the highest test scores in the state (and among the highest nationally) are at a school that requires student participation in what area of study? give you a hint: not sports; not science; not mathematics; not language arts; and not cultural studies. give up? FINE ARTS, which not only help students become more interesting, expressive people, but seem to have a profound effect on academic achievement. think this will be noticed? gee, what part of the new high school on chamblin rd in columbia county is already finished? the football stadium (sigh)

The reason DFA has such a high level of success academically is because they get the bulk of their students in the 6th grade and have seven years to prepare them. Students have to take a test to make sure they are on reading level, audition to be selected, and sign a contract for behavior and academic performance to remain. Here's a critical question that needs to be asked: How many Special Needs students are at DFA? Another important question: How do you expect "regular" high schools to perform at a high level when the top of each school's academic bell curve is at one of the three magnet programs? As long as the magnets use academic performance as a primary admissions criteria, we will continue to fund headline grabbing, elitest, publicly funded private schools.

If you take a look at the breakdown of scores, there is a significant difference between the number of students who actually TAKE this test between the counties. It only makes sense that the select few students who opt to take this test would score higher than a larger group. It is more difficult for 200-300 students to have a higher average score than a group of less than 100 students. Davidson certainly should be commended for excellent performance but the numbers tell more than the article.

don't hate DFA, JOHNSON, OR C T WALKER, yes it is true they choose their students, ont thing you foget is that the must preform up to and excced expectations!!! just because you are chosen doesn't mean you will succeed. the missing factor in the overall equation that you and others fail to realize is PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT, whereas the parents RAISE THEIR OWN CHILDREN. no matter what school or how challenging the curriculum a child's succuess or failure in school and life starts in the home. schools are not meant to baby sit your child, maybe..just maybe if you ms. tammybuzz would take the time to follow up with you child to see what he/she is being taught and make sure he/she understands what is being taught and is prepared then it will not matter what school you child is attending, because your child will excel because he/she is prepared and put a position to learn. so no need to hate DFA or any other magnet/charter school, because they are doing what the other under preforming schools in richmond county are not, that is concentrate on educating the children so they become productive members of society with the ability to give back instead of becoming a drain

88% or $208 million of the Augusta/Richmond County BOE budget is coming from the State of Georgia and Federial government (average $8,500.00 per student). We have spent $500 million in building new schools. The student enrollment has drop 4% (1047 students) in the last 4 years. The median household income in Augusta/Richmond County is $37,000! We have BOE members that has been on the BOE for 8 years or more what are they "Rubber Stamps"? Some of the BOE must have been out for recess over the last 8 years and they have not heard the bell ringing that recess is over! The SAT "test results bell" has been ringing for years. How many more warning bells has to ring before they can here them?

Jaschild, tell us how well those in the fine arts are doing in the job market compared to those who are into sciience, mathematics and who can speak say, Spanish? Tell us which curriculum is least challenging, thus the higher scores.

All of DFA, CT Walker and AR Johnson's good press etc. is consistently overshadowed by the failures of the RC school system as a whole. We are ranked at or near the bottom of nearly every statistical catagory nationally and statewide. The only counties that do worse than us in Georgia are typically those in Atlanta, without the Magnet schools we would probably be even worse. Can we focus on the facts that overall, our school system in Richmond county is failing. We should give Dr. Bedden time, but we as parents, and members of the community need to do some serious introspection. You have a chance in November to assess your BOE member as to whether or not he or she has performed in your(yes YOUR) best interests. They are their to represent their constituents needs, integrate those into the counties needs and manage the school system. In my view they are failing, and I only use two arguments to come to this assessment; our student population is falling and our budget increasing, and our overall academic performance continues to be substandard across the board. We have neither an efficient nor effective school system, we can try to change this, or ignore it, its our choice.

no ms. tammybuzz quite the contrary, instead of criticizing a school like davidson, johnson or ct walker, since you have a full-time job taking care of the precious thing on god's green earth i would expect you as a full time mom (with the hardest job on the planet, in my opinion) would be leading the charge along with other stay at home mom's demanding that rich cnty boe would have more schools like davidson/johnson and ct walker to insure more children have access to quality education, there is not doubt in my mind you will do anything for your child and to criticize any of the magnet/charter schools will be doing you child a great dissservice, were would you rather your child attrend school any one of the magnet schools who make every effort to give your child a QUALITY education or any one of the under performing county school where most teachers spend their time babysitting instead of teaching.

well shucks let's give Bedden another bonus

How hard would it be to make this headline, "Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School has the highest SAT scores in the state"? instead of "Local scores on SAT decline"? It would have made a more positive impression.

tammybuzz, the children at Davidson are there because they wish to be involved in the Fine Arts, which other schools treat like an afterthought, so why don't you applaud that they have an option that serves their needs? These students usually don't have enough interest in most sports to find sports-oriented schools motivating for them. We pay millions for stadiums and ration out money for the ARTS. So if we have ONE school in the area that will audition creative students with grades C and above, why is that a problem for you? Their parents go the extra miles (literally and in volunteering time and/or monetary support) to get their children in an environment that promotes well-rounded interests and skills that translate well to academic success. The sports-minded families select where they live to get their children in the schools that excel in the sports their children tend to excel in. A.R. Johnson students are screened for their interests in science and medical fields, so they are "selected", too. Davidson simply did better on the SAT tests than all of the other schools in the county. Give credit where credit is due. Spare us your negativity.

To be fair, it would have been nice to highlight Columbia County's average score of 1500 on the SAT, since it was higher than the other county scores in the CSRA. I would also like to congratulate my two children who took the SAT tests this year and contributed to those high scores. I am very proud of them. They went to Glenn Hills Elementary (gifted program) for several years, then C.T.Walker, then Davidson, so Richmond County teachers are doing something right.

At least one of the posters seems to be a jealous teacher at a school that didn't fare as well as Davidson. Just try harder instead of trying to discount and badmouth another school's success. This is not a private school, it is a public school with students from all socio-economic backgrounds. It is not just one year's class in the school taking the SAT's either, so the testing isn't limited to a class of approximately 100. Juniors as well as seniors are taking the test. The numbers never tell the whole story. I wish you could know the stories of some of the children behind these numbers and the hurdles many have faced before earning these scores. They are inspiring.

jisomjr all the other schools get the same amount of time to prepare their "kids" as any other school, including Davidson, as long as the students are "present" there and taught and not transferred in from elsewhere.

jack, the SAT scores aren't from the curriculum. And there's nothing wrong with Davidson's curriculum if it is generating the highest SAT scores in the county. If you're wondering how Fine Arts Students are doing in the working world compared to other high school graduates, why don't you do a study? I only know a few of the students who have already graduated from college after Davidson, (one is working at a research lab after graduating from Georgia Tech) so I am curious about the percentages, too. The bulk of students that my children know are still in high school or thriving in college, so I don't know what the working world holds for them yet. Do a study or find one and let us know about it, then we can all know.

ms. baroness, let me clarify, as i believe we are on the same path but i failed to be clear on my meaning. "babysitting" in regards to the other schools is not by designed, the poor teachers have not choice because their is a lack of parental responsibility so the teachers have to take on a dual role of parent/tecaher because the parents are too sorry to raise their own children and be responsible parent(s), which i have not doubt that you are. so the poor teachers are then thrust into a situation that i would not wished on my worse enemy. so in the end when the child disrupts or can't pass the crct the parent then attacks the teacher and blames the system for her fialings as a parent. i am not, nor will i ever talk poorly about the teachers because gtheir hands are tied an they must make due and endure the countless rounds of verbal, physical and mental abuse heaped upon them by the sorry parents who care more about sports than academic achievement for their kids...so forgive me for not making myself clear

There are SAT coaches, and SAT prep classes, they are not mandatory. The bottom line here is you cannot use SAT scores as an accurate representation of a schools ability or success at teaching. The SAT is not manadatory, only the kids who want to take it do, so right off the bat you are only seeing the performance of 1/4 to 1/3 of the student population, with the exception being at Davidson and Johnson where almost the entire population takes the test, and they take their education seriously. I know most of us hate the standardized tests but honestly the GHSGT is the most comprehensive examination of a students knowledge gained in a Georgia public high school, the fact that some students have to take this test 4-5 times to pass to receive their diploma is a more accurate and scary picture of our schools. Congratulations to all of the kids who took the SAT or ACT, wether they did well or not, they are the minority of students who are looking at high school as a step towards secondary education and further success and not as the last step towards a minimum wage job which a high school diploma gets you. A college degree is now what a high school diploma used to be.

jisomjr, that's okay, it's hard to be clear in these short posts, and it's nice that you had a minute to elaborate and clarify after my post. I never take any of these posts as absolutes, they are not meant to be. And I have no issue with the posters themselves, I'm glad they have a place here to express their opinions.

I went to Glenn Hills in the 70's and did very well on the SAT, despite not having any coaches or prep classes. I barely got word about the existence of the SAT in time to take it! Things sure have changed.

jisomjr,
I love the last line of your post

"endure the countless rounds of verbal, physical and mental abuse heaped upon them by the sorry parents who care more about sports than academic achievement for their kids"

You are so correct in that assessment, hoping and praying their kids will be good enough to get a scholarship to play "ball" when in reality they have less than a tenth of a percents chance of making it into any major sports league, let alone college. Friday night, stadium packed with parents/family, PTA meeting, no-body shows. They come in for their parent teacher conference, and the first thing out of their mouth is "not my baby, they wouldn't do that" I saw it first hand as a marching band chaperone for 4 years. Complete disassociation of the parent from the childs wrongdoing, and all blame placed on the teacher/school. This is why we will be ranked near the bottom for the quality of our schools, the majority of parents don't care, but don't try to tell them that. Its a wonder we have any educators at all, I hold them all in high regard just for what they have to put up with on a daily basis, from the students, and the parents.

Reading all of these comments reminds me of may chidren when someone did something wrong at home. The famous question "Who did this?" and all three children would answer the famous answer "I don't know!" $500 millions in new schools is not the answer! Pack football stadum on Friday night is not the answer. Parents with their head in sand about their child proformence is not the answer. BOE lack of accountablity is not the answer. Spending $8,500 per child a year is not the answer. Not enough Magnet school is not the answer. Teacher proformence is not the answer. No one really gives a Damn that must be the answer!

Big vike, I agree with you on your statement about students acquiring a college degree. In today's competitive work force, it is almost mandatory for students to have a college degree if they want to earn enough money to support themselves. Unfortunately, there are students who fail to understand this concept until it is too late. Those students who think it is cool to drop out of high school or college end up earning minimum wage and wondering why they don't have enough money to support themselves or their families. The SAT is supposed to be a predictor of how successful a student will be in college. From that point on, all that matters is their GPA when they graduate. How many students do we know who have received the HOPE and then lost it? All students have different learning styles and for some the arts is the way to go. Others learn best by visual, verbal or kinesthetic approaches. I think students should be commended if they earn any type of scholarship to college. At least they are taking responsibility for their education.

Since we are so good at hiring peoeple around here to do studies why doesn't Bedden take some of that bonus he got and pay someone to do a study of why students at Davidson excel compared to the other local schools. I can give you one answer and it won't cost a dime. PARENTS WHO CARE!!!!!!!!!!!! OH AND CHILDREN WHO WANT AN EDUCATION NOT A PLACE TO GO HANG OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is true, Lifeisabeach. In public schools, teachers are responsible for teaching ALL students, whether they want to learn or be there or not and regardless of their home environment and parenting styles they have lived with. Wouldn't it be great if all students came to school eager to learn? Any teacher will tell you that is not the case no matter which school you are talking about. This attitude carries over into adulthood as they enter the work force (or not) and want to work (or not) and become successful (or not).

glad to tell you, jack: students with undergraduate degrees in the arts are accepted at a higher rate to law and medical than any other degree. how's that for faring in the job market? as far as a "more rigorous" curriculum, i guess you haven't the discipline for musical study; otherwise, you wouldn't even bother to raise the issue of lack of rigor in studying the arts (at least i presume that was one of the aspersions you were casting). but please, i'd love to know how YOU believe students who are involved in the state-mandated science, mathematics, and, yes, spanish, curricula are faring in the job market (hint: not too well unless they enjoy entry-level service jobs).