Hopi rep calls for unified curriculum; test scores reported

Stan Bindell
Special to the Independent

POLACCA, ARIZ.—Hopi Councilman Leroy Lewis feels that Hopi elementary schools should have unified curriculums. Councilman Lewis, who is also a candidate for the Polacca Day School Governing Board, wants the Hopi elementary schools to give the AIMS test and report the scores.

Lewis, who represents First Mesa Consolidated Villages on the tribal council, is not alone. Patrick Dallas, a concerned parent, said the Hopi Tribal Council should mandate that the elementary schools report their standardized test scores and the re porting should be forwarded to the BIA.

"The schools belong to the community. It hurts the students and the tribe when scores are not reported," said Lewis. "This is a process we all need to participate in. That's what gets our children into universities and higher learning."

This was the focus Feb. 26 during a school improvement plan meeting at Hopi Junior High School. Selwyn Namoki, a former governing board member at Hopi Junior/Senior High School, said they tried to get the Hopi Board of Education (HBOE) to correct the lack of a unified curriculum at the elementary schools, but HBOE failed to have quorums at most planned meetings.

"Some principals did not want to report their test scores. Some felt they did not need to," he said.

Namoki also criticized parents for not getting more involved in their children's education. He said some parents complained about lack of transportation to Hopi Jr./Sr. High School, but the school sent buses to all the villages three times with only one parent using the buses. "We can't just say it's the children or the teachers fault."

Administrators at Hopi Junior High School say its tough for their students to perform well on stan dardized tests when students enter the school several years behind in reading, writing and math scores.

Seventeen parents, two students and seven Hopi Junior High staff at tended the public hearing in the auditorium to discuss Hopi Junior High's School Improvement Plan, which had been given to the Arizona Department of Education (ADOE) before Jan. 29. Administrators commended the parents for at tending despite cold, snowy weather.

Last year, ADOE tagged Hopi Junior High with an "underperforming" rating based on its Stanford 9 and AIMS test scores. A recurring theme of this meeting was that students who had attended Hopi elementary schools had come into Hopi Junior High with low reading, writing and math skills. Moreover, some Hopi elementary schools did not give their students the standardized tests, and some that gave the tests did not report the test scores.

Hopi Junior High Principal Glenn Haven presented the data about the school improvement plan to the audience. He noted that the junior high has aligned its math and language arts curriculum to meet state standards.

One of Hopi Junior High School's formal recommendations is that the elementary schools on the Hopi Reservation align their math and language arts curriculums to meet state standards as well as unifying their curriculums with each other. Currently that is not the case as each school has its own curriculum.

Principal Haven said he has been meeting with elementary school principals and believes they are moving in this direction, but that it will take time. "We just started a dialogue with the principals," he said.

Haven emphasized that the intent was not to point fingers, but to better prepare students for the standardized tests. "I want to do more for children so they can go to universities," he said.

Haven praised two recommendations from parents attending this meeting. One calls for parents to receive tutoring so they know how to help their children. The other calls for students to attend school meetings along with their parents and grandparents so they all play a role in helping the students perform bet ter on their standardized tests.

Haven said another recommendation in the School Improvement Plan report is that the Hopi elementary schools should be mandated to report its standardized test scores to the junior high school and the public.

Dr. Paul Reynolds, superintendent of Hopi Jr./Sr. High School, said the junior high school needs to see the results of the standardized tests at the Hopi elementary schools.

"Let us have the results so we can review them to see where we are so we can cure our weaknesses and im prove our strengths," said Reynolds, who emphasized that Hopi Jr./Sr. High School has good students who excel academically.

"We're not running away from this. We're aggressively examining it," he said.

Reynolds praised Haven for tak ing the attitude that "we can do better and we will do better." Reynolds added that unifying the curriculum at the elementary schools is important so that test scores can be improved.

"Hopi education needs improvement, and I think we're working on that," he said. Reynolds noted that Hopi High School finished in the top 26 percent of the state in reading and writing. Reynolds thanked the parents for attending.

"The dialogue is important. We want to give the very best education to the children and we want to give them the best opportunity to suc ceed," he said. Haven said Hopi Junior High will offer remedial classes for students who need to bring their test scores up.

Hopi High Principal Glenn Gil man noted that the high school students have been performing well and outscoring surrounding schools with their AIMS scores in the language arts. He added, however, that the math scores have been low.

Gilman said the "under performing" rating at the junior high school just means that ADOE is looking for gradual improvements in student test scores.

"When we have students who haven't taken the test in five years, before coming to Hopi Junior High, then they're at a disadvantage when they take the test," he said.

Gilman emphasized that the school feels the state should have implemented the AIMS test from the lower grades up, but instead started from the higher grades down.

"When students are not given the elementary test in the lower grades, it's hard to catch up," he said. "We're set with what we want to do. Now, the tribe needs to get involved.