THELEAVEN.ORG | VOL. 44, NO. 14 | NOVEMBER 11, 2022
LEAVEN FILE PHOTO BY JAY SOLDNER
Archdiocesan schools continued with in-person learning for the 2020-21 “pandemic” school year, while taking health precautions like these students at St. Rose Philippine School in Garnett. Vince Cascone, superintendent of archdiocesan schools, thinks the decision to remain open is what made the high performance of Catholic schools achieved on the National Assessment of Education Progress Report Card possible. The results of the assessment were only recently published.
COMING UP ACES
Nation’s Report Card shows Catholic Schools performing at a high level
By Moira Cullings moira.cullings@theleaven.org
K
ANSAS CITY, Kan. — “As the years go by, we’re going to look back and it’s going to be shown more and more that we made the right decision to be in school,” said Vince Cascone, superintendent of archdiocesan schools. He was referring to the benefits of the in-person learning offered by archdiocesan schools during the 2020-21 school year as compared to school systems that continued with distance learning. His prediction is already bearing out. On Oct. 24, the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), also known as the Nation’s Report Card, released a report on the state of schools in the United States for the first time since 2019. The report assesses math and
reading proficiency for fourth and eighth grade students. According to the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA), the report showed that Catholic schools are outperforming public schools in nearly every category.
“The data also shows that Catholic schools are near the top in learning outcomes for students receiving free and reduced-price lunch, demonstrating the system’s commitment to underprivileged students,” according to an NCEA press release.
“Although Catholic school students experienced a statistically significant five-point drop in grade [eight] math,” it continued, “Catholic school students’ average scores remained 15 points higher than the average scores of their grade [eight] public school peers.” Cascone believes there are multiple reasons for the success. A major one was the willingness of educators to open their schools in the fall of 2020 to in-person learning despite the unknowns surrounding COVID. “They did it willingly,” he said, “and they did it because deep down they knew that was what was best for the students.” Cascone said when he visited schools in the midst of COVID, many teachers were overwhelmed, particularly with the idea of teaching inperson as well as offering a virtual >> See “TEACHERS” on page 4