The Observation Deck

The latest "report cards" on schools were released by the state. Here you can find a searchable database and see how Lakewood performed, and compare to other cities.

http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/in ... Again=true

Seems like Lakewood is slipping. "Average" is not a recipe for success in this world, let alone below average grades.

I wonder what Mrs. Beebe has to say about it?

All this money that we just put into building new schools, further burdening the taxpayers, with the promise that by doing so would increase Lakewood's scores. Similar logic to how closing the Hospital will make Lakewood a better community.

I am sick of the school levies and the praises lavished upon our Superintendent. Our tax dollars could have been better used.

I find these state tests very suspect for a few reasons:

*They generally penalize districts that have a higher percentage of poor and special needs kids.
*The whole Common Core "test taking industry" is another bit of crony capitalism where politicians dole out business to their campaign donors.
*Many of the proponents of these tests are the anti-public school zealots that want to privatize education. Many of these are driven by a hatred of unions.
*I have extensive experience in statistics and analysis. I find their methodology questionable....for example, who defines terms such as "vulnerable" students?

With all that said, the sad fact is that many people see these test results and believe them.
Even though the schools do a great job in many ways, outsiders will view them negatively due to these state measures.
Our current city and school leadership is too busy pushing its pollyanish propaganda to address this issue....they point to the current snapshot of the real estate market and pretend that the future is bright.
Have you been to the Solstice Steps yet?

cameron karslake wrote:Seems like Lakewood is slipping. "Average" is not a recipe for success in this world, let alone below average grades.

I wonder what Mrs. Beebe has to say about it?

Asking for better results will only get you into trouble. Demanding excellence is beyond the pale.

Michael Deneen wrote:Many of the proponents of these tests are the anti-public school zealots that want to privatize education. Many of these are driven by a hatred of unions.

Very true statement. There is a very real aspect of these report cards that are intended to discredit the public schools. Acknowledge these grades, but do take them with a grain of salt.

Were you to have spare time after successfully stopping the privatizing of Lakewood's healthcare assets by dark money corporatist insiders, you could follow the State Board of Education and Kasich's minions as they work to profitize public school assets, which includes funneling monies back into the campaign pockets of Kasich and his cronies. Think ALEC. Think Koch.

I know I am an apologist for the schools, well the teachers, administrations and kids. But for the past handful of years kids, teachers, everyone has been in a complete state of change as the new schools were built. I would say, let the dust settle before we go nuts. Of course we should always hold schools, and school boards accountable for their plans, actions and putting plans into action. But this is a tough time. Watching teachers trying to find their new rooms, and figure out what goes where, underlined the state of flux. Throw in move to Common Core, other community issues, and it is a tough year to grade Lakewood.

Let them get set, ready, then let's see how it pays off.

Big news Monday for sports fans!

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cmager wrote:

Michael Deneen wrote:Many of the proponents of these tests are the anti-public school zealots that want to privatize education. Many of these are driven by a hatred of unions.

Very true statement. There is a very real aspect of these report cards that are intended to discredit the public schools. Acknowledge these grades, but do take them with a grain of salt.

Were you to have spare time after successfully stopping the privatizing of Lakewood's healthcare assets by dark money corporatist insiders, you could follow the State Board of Education and Kasich's minions as they work to profitize public school assets, which includes funneling monies back into the campaign pockets of Kasich and his cronies. Think ALEC. Think Koch.

Lakewood happens to have new school buildings with all the associated turmoil. But that's not really the root cause. Look at peer school systems and see similar grades. As mentioned, give some thought to the political/profitizing games being played by the State of Ohio.

Unfortunately I am not optimistic for the future.

At the local level, our School Board will continue to "whistle a happy tune"....as evidenced by Beebe's recent pieces in the Observer. The Board would rather work to destroy the hospital than work to fight Common Core.
This board is deeply entrenched and unlikely to be voted out anytime soon.
Instead of working to change the system, they will likely ignore or downplay test results...even though the results will be used against this city in the real estate marketplace.


At the state level, Republicans will remain in control for the foreseeable future. That means more standardized testing and more push toward charter schools.

At the federal level, a Hillary win will put Corporate Democrats in control for at least the next four years, likely followed by a Republican in 2020. This means more of the same.....

If Trump wins, all hell will probably break loose. School scores will be among the least of our problems.

Wow! These scores are terrible, but certainly not unexpected. For a more detailed report per school you can go to the Ohio Department of Education website and look them up, broken down by individual school. I don't believe in the blaming game of saying "it is the the State Testing", or "it is the special education kid's fault", or "it is the ESL student's faults, " it is the old building's fault".

In my opinion, there is NO EXCUSE. Public schools get plenty of tax money, especially here in Lakewood. All governments, but especially local school districts, need to be more fiscally responsible. It appears that the schools are or were millions over budget on the new buildings. Why? Isn't Ms. Beebe an attorney? It appears that someone doesn't have the knowledge of how to write and review a contract so that the taxpayers would not end up in this predicament. That being said, It appears that Beebe and some of the school board members are also members of Summers and Company. I believe we cannot trust most of these people any longer. I believe most of them need to be stopped. They appear to be sucking the city dry of our tax money and tearing down the city one property and one historical house at a time.

I firmly support competitive education where your tax money goes where your child goes. Competition will wake them up once they start losing money. Turn it over to the private sector and watch what happens. Private schools have to watch what money is spent on or they will go under. Aren't both Superintendent Patterson and John Crane (security director) retired from previous jobs? Didn't Mr. Patterson previously work in Orville? Isn't Mr. Crane a retired Lakewood policeman? Didn't Mr. Patterson recently get a raise? Little to no accountability results in over-spending and what appears to be too many perks for administrators.

Just my opinion.