Schools chief says scores don't indicate crisis

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Education Writer

State schools superintendent Pat Hamamoto said yesterday that she is upset with the latest student test scores but chastised critics who would use the results to paint public schools in crisis.

"This is misleading, unfair and just plain wrong,'' she said at a press conference at the state Department of Education.

The Hawai'i State Assessment, a gauge of student performance in math and reading compared with state and national standards, showed that public-school students are below state standards but are even with or above the national average by some measures.

Hamamoto said the results are a "temperature check" on public schools but should not be used to draw conclusions on student performance or teacher quality.

"We would like to do better. We expect to do better, and we will do better," Hamamoto said.

She said schools where students need to improve will receive special assistance to try to keep pace with the federal No Child Left Behind law, which demands progress toward a national goal of having all students proficient in math and reading by 2014.

Joan Husted, executive director of the Hawai'i State Teachers Association, appeared with Hamamoto at the press conference and said the test scores are not the final commentary on teacher effectiveness.

"We have work to do," she said. "We're not naive. We're not Pollyannish."

Hamamoto said it could take several years before improvements in the classroom are reflected on test scores. "Am I upset and angry about the scores and where they are?" she said. "Absolutely."

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8084.