Press Release Submitted Sep 00 (Unknown if published)

Parents and Students Supporting Standards of Learning report good news in Virginia SOL statewide scores.

Contact - Steve Hunt (703) 428-0896 [day] / (703)502-0633 [evenings]

The Commonwealth of Virginia just released the statewide SOL scores and it is good news. Passing rates have increase in 21 of 27 SOL tests, many with double digit improvements. Across Virginia, the Standards of Learning are inspiring improvement in the educational programs of individual schools and entire school systems. As school administrators embrace the SOLs, pull their teaching staffs together as a team and face up to the challenge, school by school is seeing an improvement in learning. This improvement is reflected in the increase, at times dramatic, in the Stanford 9 national rankings at schools that have seen an increase in SOL scores. This dispels the myth that the SOL program merely teaches to the test and illustrates that the skills necessary to achieve the SOL standards are the same skills a child needs to excel throughout their academic experience and in our high-tech work environment.

In Roanoke, school superintendent Wayne Harris says that the SOL program can be a catalyst for accountability, and that principals and other school administrators must insist on accountability and welcome it. He has urged principals to use test results and other data to help teachers think clearly about improving instruction and upgrading their skills. The results can be seen in Fishburn Park Elementary, where about four out of every 10 pupils at the school qualify for free or reduced-price lunches, and Asians, African American, Hispanics and other minorities make up more than a third of the enrollment. They have achieved full accreditation by meeting the 70% passing requirement. This year 25 of the 26 Roanoke schools are either fully or provisionally accredited.

Even in Fairfax County, site of some of the fiercest resistance to the SOLs, there has been improvement. Pine Spring and eight other "Excel" elementary schools have met or exceeded their annual goals for improvement. Pine Spring Elementary saw their fifth grade math passing rate jump from last year's 64% to this year's 96% and the history rate leap from 29% to 89%. Dispelling the myth that the system teaches to the test, the Stanford 9 Achievement Test rankings of fourth graders soared from 43rd to 73rd in the nation in math, along with substantial improvements in reading, science and social studies. The sixth graders saw Stanford 9 improvements in all areas. The motivation provided by the SOL accountability resulted in significant improvement of academic achievements throughout the school.

The improvements in these schools demonstrate that all children can learn and there are no excuses for not teaching them the basic skills required to meet the state standards and to truly excel throughout their academic careers. Many of these schools have had poor standardized test results for years. If not for the SOL system and its strong accountability component, these schools would not have been provided with the urgency to make these innovative improvements.

The Virginia Standards of Learning and Standards of Accreditation create an accountability system that links the state standards to student performance and school accreditation. The SOLs set the material to be taught in Virginia, the tests determine if the material is being taught effectively and the accreditation link assures the motivation to focus on achieving the standards. Remove any of these and the system will cease to provide the positive effects it has generated across the state in such a short time. The newly released SOL results prove that this system is working.

Parents and Students Supporting Standards of Learning (PASS-SOL) is a team of Virginia citizens, parents, teachers, students, administrators, and policy makers who desire to make our schools the best in the country. We know that the Standards of Learning and the Standards of Accreditation are helping to improve our Virginia public schools. We believe a Virginia high school diploma should be a statement of value and quality for all graduates and employers. Our goal is to provide the best education possible for Virginia's children so that all students can reach their potential. We advocate high academic standards and genuine accountability as an historically proven method to achieve the best education for our children. Learn more about PASS-SOL and the SOLs at http://www.pass-sol.org.