In education, the number that measures success is the number of students who complete high school and graduate, and this year, Miami-Dade’s graduation rate has risen once again, to an impressive 80.7 percent for the 2016-2017 school year.
Triumph is based on the things we can achieve. When we talk about successes we always mention that we have this or that, that we have become this or that. All our triumphs consist of the achievements we have been able to acquire. Education is one of those cornerstones, from which many successes can be developed.
In education, the number that measures success is the number of students who complete high school and graduate, and this year, Miami-Dade’s graduation rate has risen once again, to an impressive 80.7 percent for the 2016-2017 school year.
Although the success of our schools is measured by that number alone, there are many supplements that help us achieve goals in our school district. For example, we can mention, the results of SAT tests; Advanced Placement courses) that tests have been taken and also the tests of those subjects that have been approved, the hours of community service that have been performed; awards that have been won in educational competitions and also from state and national departments of education, which can place the district in a prestigious place; as well as the blissful grades of school performance ranging from ‘A’ to ‘F’ and after many years of hard work, traditional public schools of Miami-Dade no longer has a single one with ‘F’.
The Miami-Dadschool district achieved this year the best graduation rate it has ever had, since the Florida Department of Education began tracking graduation statistics in the late ’90s. And this has occurred, even though 10th graders faced a more rigorous English Language Arts component in the Florida Standards Assessments.
In just 10 years, Miami-Dade’s graduation rate has increased 22 percentage points and if you exclude data from so-called charter schools, which are located in our county but are independently run, the graduation rate increases from 80.7 to 84.2 percent.
Miami-Dade public school teachers have performed incredibly well in certain segments of the overall student body, even surpassing state rates. 81.3 percent of Hispanic students graduated statewide, but in our Miami-Dade County public schools, Hispanics achieved an 84.2 percent graduation rate. Similarly, 74.8 percent of African-American students graduated statewide, but Miami-Dade County public schools, excluding charter schools, graduated 81.1 percent.
In the segment of public school students of Miami-Dade that fall into the poverty rate, which exceeds 70 percent in our County Miami-Dade, we’ve been able to serve those students more effectively than in other districts in the state, which puts us two percentage points above the state’s graduation rate for economically disadvantaged students. Miami-Dade has performed extraordinarily in helping exceptional students finish high school and graduate; we have also surpassed the state graduation rate for ESE students by nearly 9 percentage points.
Another factor contributing to the increased graduation rate at M-DCPS is the successful implementation of Diploma Pathways. The Diploma Pathways gives students the option of earning a Standard Diploma or adding industry certificates for a Designation of Merit or adding higher academic courses to receive an Academic Designation. If a student completes rigorous coursework, maintains a high grade point average, and actively participates in community service, the student may receive the Superintendent’s Diploma of Distinction. Internationally recognized diploma programs also become additional options for students throughout the district.
Even though they have faced more rigorous standards, our students continue to excel. For our school district, the 2016-2017 graduation rates are a direct result of the support of students’ families, the visionary leadership of our School Board, and the instructional ingenuity of teachers and school leaders.
Source: https://www.diariolasamericas.com/
