South Carolina Public School Students Failing End-Of-Grade Tests! 60% Of All Students!

View Larger Map

Sources: Fox News, Youtube, Google Maps

South Carolina's S.A.T. Scores Plummet! Segregation & Discrimination In Education!

Average S.C. SAT score drops by 7 points

S.C. high school students' SAT scores dropped last year, but their performance on college-level Advanced Placement course exams improved.

That's according to new data released today by the S.C. Department of Education.

The average score of S.C. graduating seniors taking the SAT, a test that gauges college readiness, is 1,436 -- down seven points from the previous year. That compares with the national average score of 1,500 -- down six points.

Broken down by test sections, S.C. seniors scored 482 on the critical reading portion of the test, 490 in math and 464 in writing. The national average in those sections is 497 on reading, 514 on math, and 489 on writing.

State Superintendent of Education Mick Zais cited as a particular concern the state’s lagging scores in critical reading and writing.

“Like the other college admission test ACT, the SAT is not a measure of school effectiveness,” Zais said in a statement. “However, within the student population taking the SAT is another data point confirming a troubling trend: there is a wide reading gap between South Carolina and the nation.

“Addressing the reading gap in elementary school must be our top priority because reading is fundamental to everything else in a student’s education,” said Zais, a Republican elected last November. “If students cannot read, they will not succeed in school. To accomplish this goal, we must transform education from a one-size-fits-all system to one that delivers a personalized and customized education to each student.”

SAT scores for individual high schools and school districts were not made available today by the College Review Board, which oversees the SAT, the state Education Department said.

The state’s high school students fared better on Advanced Placement exams. Through AP courses, and the accompanying exams that demonstrate mastery of the course material, students earn college credit while still in high school. Since 1984, South Carolina has paid for AP instructional materials, paid students’ test fees and offered specialized training for teachers.

Every student enrolled in an AP course is required to take the exam.

The percentage of S.C. students receiving a passing score of 3, 4, or 5 on their AP exam increased by 10.3 percent and a total increase of 32.5 percent over the past five years. A 5 is the top score a student can receive.

“While AP scores are not a good indicator of school performance, the success of these individual students is a worthy accomplishment,” Zais said. “The students, their parents, and their teachers deserve all the credit for these gains.

“By taking advantage of the opportunities AP exams present, students can cut future costs associated with continuing their education,” Zais said. “These courses offer students college-level rigor without the price tag of college tuition.”


View Larger Map

Sources: The State, Youtube, Google Maps

Zhu Zhu Pets Are Safe, Per Federal Gov't

Toy safety regulators said Monday that Zhu Zhu Pets, one of the holiday season's hottest toy crazes, do not violate Federal Safety standards after all.




Sources: AP, Youtube

Early NTSB Test Results Reveal Circuit On Track Near Crash Site Didn't Work...Lawsuits Filed

MSNBC----

WASHINGTON - Investigators say a signaling system failed to detect a stopped commuter train during tests of the track where a deadly crash occurred this week in Washington, D.C.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday that the train control system lost detection of a test train that was stopped in the same place as the train that was struck on Monday.

The NTSB also says the operator of the struck train was interviewed Thursday. He told investigators that his train was running in manual mode at the time of the crash. The operator says he was waiting for another train to clear when he felt a hard push to his train from behind.

Investigators say they are still examining the crash site to understand how the train control system functioned on Monday.

The Washington-area mass transit system will inspect every stretch of its tracks as federal investigators work to determine whether problems found with a signaling system in one area could have contributed to this week's crash that killed nine people.

Metro General Manager John Catoe also said Thursday the agency will start rearranging its trains to put the oldest and structurally weakest rail cars in the middle, instead of at the ends, where they are more vulnerable.

Catoe said he ordered inspections of all 3,000 circuits, or sections beneath the track that include a signaling system. The signals provide critical information to passing trains such as when to stop or slow down. Tests by the National Transportation Safety Board indicated a problem with one of the circuits in the area of Monday's crash.

Circuits are vital:

"Whether trains are operated in automatic or manual, these circuits are vital," said Debbie Hersman of the National Transportation Safety Board. "We're particularly interested in the speed commands that might be sent from that circuit when there's a train standing on that circuit."

Investigators were planning to test the track with a six-car train.

An engineering professor who's studied transportation safety said that if sensors failed on the track, it could have contributed to Monday's crash. He emphasized, though, that catastrophic crashes usually can't be blamed on a single factor.

"If the sensors didn't work properly, it deprived (the train operator) of very vital information," said Najm Meshkati, professor of engineering at the University of Southern California. The operator, he said, "was the last layer of defense."

Since the crash, the NTSB has also criticized Metro for failing to revamp or replace its 1000-series rail cars after previous warnings by the agency. The striking train, which sustained most of the damage in Monday's crash, was made up of those cars, which date back to the 1970s. The cars are not as good at withstanding crashes as later models.

Catoe insisted Thursday that the cars were safe, but said the agency was in the process of putting the 1000-series cars in the middle of trains, and not on the ends, as an added precaution. Metro spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said later it would not be possible to make that change in every case, but the agency will do it where they can.

The union representing Metro workers demanded that change on Wednesday.

Metro on Thursday reopened the two stations that had been closed since the crash, but only for rush hour. Trains were running along just one track, leaving the side damaged in the crash closed as the investigation continues.

Family seeks $950,000 in lawsuit:

A Washington couple who say their 15-year-old son was injured in the crash filed a lawsuit in federal court on Wednesday against Metro, which is formally known as the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

In the lawsuit, Imhotep Yakub and Dawn Flanagan say their son, Davonne Flanagan, was a passenger in the striking train. They say he fractured his femur and suffered other injuries. The family is seeking $950,000 in damages.

The deadliest crash in the rail system's 33-year history occurred when a train plowed into another that was stopped. The moving train was operating in automatic mode, which means it was primarily controlled by a computer, although there is evidence the operator applied the emergency brake.

Since the crash, trains have been manually controlled as a precaution against computer problems. Catoe said trains will continue running manually until all the circuits are inspected and the agency is "100 percent sure the system is in 100 percent working condition."

Hersman said inspectors found 300 feet to 400 feet of rails that showed signs of emergency braking. Hersman also has said the emergency brake control on the moving train was found pushed down, though it's not clear how or when that happened. The operator of the oncoming train was among the dead.

Hersman said investigators hoped to interview the operator of the other train on Thursday, a day after his release from the hospital.

NTSB officials say their investigations can take more than a year.


View Larger Map

Sources: MSNBC, Google Maps