A Look at Boston's Special Education Population

Next in the series regarding the special education populations Massachusetts' ten urban districts, we'll look at Boston. In the Boston public school system, special education students currently make up 18.7% of the student population; BPS has an enrollment of 55,414 with 10,373 students identified as 'special education.'

Demographics

Below is how the special ed population breaks down in terms of demographics.

Asian	3.7%
Black/African American	40.5%
Hispanic	42.1%
Multiracial	1.7%
Native American	0.3%
White	11.4%

Female	33%
Male	67%

Low Income	74.2%
Limited English Proficiency	29.5%
First Lang. Not English	36.6%

The disabilities with the highest student counts in Boston are:

• Specific Learning Disability (3,370)
• Communication (1,839)
• Emotional (1,222)
• Intellectual (1,172)
• Developmental Delay (1,172)

The age with the highest student count is 11 (788 students) followed by 10 (782).

MCAS

Special ed students in Boston, a Level 4 district, were among the subgroups not making Adequate Yearly Progress at all grade levels in 2011 similar to the Lynn, Worcester and Fall River public school districts. In 2011, students with disabilities had a 15% proficiency rate in English language arts  (ELA) exam and a 12% proficiency rate in math. The Composite Performance Indices (CPI) for special education students has increased 2.1 points in ELA and  3.3 points in math since 2009. CPIs are a measure of the extent to which students are progressing toward proficiency in ELA and math; the goal is a CPI of 100.  More specifically, each student participating in the MCAS is given a score based on well they perform on the exam which is later averaged to determine the school or subgroup's CPI; possible scores are 0 (Warning/Failing - Low), 25 (Warning/Failing - High), 50 (Needs Improvement - Low), 75 (Needs Improvement - High), and 100 (Proficient or Advanced). In 2011, the ELA CPI for students with disabilities was 57.3 while the math CPI was 49.3.

Educational Outcomes

In terms of educational outcomes, special education students in Boston tend to graduate at a much lower rate than 'general education' students. This is much in line with state trends as well as the trend seen in both Lynn and Worcester as well as in Fall River. See below for the graduation rates from 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	36.2%	35.8%	36.9%	41%	40.9%
General Ed	64.6%	63.3%	65.4%	66.4%	68.7%
All Students	59.1%	57.9%	59.9%	61.4%	63.2%

The graduation rate for this population in Boston decreased slightly to 40.8% in 2011 for the district as a whole. Nearly 32% of special education students were still in school after four years in 2011 while 25.3% dropped out. The five year graduation rate for special education students in Boston was 48.6% in 2010 with 17% still in school.

Special ed students in Boston also, for the most part, tend to dropout at a higher rate than the general ed population. Below is the annual dropout rate for the years 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	12.3%	11.2%	9.4%	9.6%	5.5%
General Ed	9.4%	8.5%	7.2%	6.4%	7.1%
All Students	9.9%	8.9%	7.6%	7%	6.8%

One can see here that although the trend is for a higher percentage of special education students to drop out than general education students, in 2010 the opposite was true with a slightly higher percentage of general ed students leaving school compared to special ed students. The four year dropout rate for special ed students was however over 10 percentage points higher than the district rate as a whole in 2011 as 15.1% of all students dropped out of school compared to 25.3% of special ed students. On a positive note, the four year dropout rate for special ed students is down four percentage points from 2006. 

In 2009-10, a little more than half of the special ed students were going to attend a college or university with 57.1% of this group attending a Massachusetts community college; 27.5% of college going special ed students planned to attend a private four year college/university. That year 193 special ed students were reported to have taken the SAT with average scores of 348 in Reading, 337 in Writing, and 346 in Math. In terms of Advanced Placement participation and performance, 44 test takers took 59 tests in 2010 with 32.2% scoring a 3 or better on a 5-point scale on all subjects combined.

*All Data Taken from: http://www.doe.mass.edu/

A Look at Fall River's Special Education Population

Next in the series regarding the special education populations Massachusetts' ten urban districts, we'll look at Fall River. In the Fall River public school system, special education students currently make up 20.8% of the student population; FRPS has an enrollment of 9,973 with 2,078 students identified as 'special education.'

Demographics

Below is how the special ed population breaks down in terms of demographics.

Asian	2.4%
Black/African American	7.3%
Hispanic	22.2%
Multiracial	3.8%
Native American	0.2%
White	64.1%

Female	31.4%
Male	68.6%

Low Income	85%
Limited English Proficiency	4.8%
First Lang. Not English	19.6%

The disabilities with the highest student counts in Fall River are:

• Specific Learning Disability (580)
• Developmental Delay (293)
• Emotional (267)
• Health (243)

The age with the highest student count is 13 (196students) followed by 11 (159).

MCAS

Special ed students in Fall River, a Level 4 district, were among the subgroups not making Adequate Yearly Progress at all grade levels in 2011. In 2011, students with disabilities had a 12% proficiency rate in English language arts  (ELA) exam and a 9% proficiency rate in math. The Composite Performance Indices (CPI) for special education students has decreased 2 points in ELA and  0.3 points in math since 2008. CPIs are a measure of the extent to which students are progressing toward proficiency in ELA and math; the goal is a CPI of 100.  More specifically, each student participating in the MCAS is given a score based on well they perform on the exam which is later averaged to determine the school or subgroup's CPI; possible scores are 0 (Warning/Failing - Low), 25 (Warning/Failing - High), 50 (Needs Improvement - Low), 75 (Needs Improvement - High), and 100 (Proficient or Advanced). In 2011, the ELA CPI for students with disabilities was 55 while the math CPI was 44.4.

Educational Outcomes

In terms of educational outcomes, special education students in Fall River tend to graduate at a much lower rate than 'general education' students. This is much in line with state trends as well as the trend seen in both Lynn and Worcester. However, the achievement gap between special education and general education students in Fall River is particularly alarming; in 2007, there was a nearly 44 point difference in graduation rates between these two subgroups. See below for the graduation rates from 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	27.4%	18.6%	37.1%	36%	36.8%
General Ed	60.6%	62.1%	60.8%	66.9%	73.4%
All Students	54.2%	54.1%	56%	62.51%	66.2%

The graduation rate for this population decreased slightly to 36.1% in 2011 for Fall River as a district.  Fall River has two secondary schools - BMC Durfee High School and Resiliency Preparatory School, which is an alternative school At Resilience, just a quarter of special education students graduated in four years or less as of 2011; at Durfee, that number was 40.8%. Approximately 19% of special education students required more than four years to complete high school in 2011 while 12% were non-grad completers.

Special ed students also tend to dropout at a higher rate than the general ed population. Below is the annual dropout rate for the years 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	16.5%	14.6%	12.8%	9.8%	7.7%
General Ed	10.5%	8.9%	12.5%	5.3%	4.3%
All Students	11.4%	9.8%	12.5%	6%	4.9%

The four year dropout rate for special ed students was 31.5% in 2011, down from 48.1%  in 2007. At the state level, special ed students had a 13.2% four year dropout rate.

In 2009-10, a little less than half of the special ed students were going to attend a college or university with 95.2% of this group attending a Massachusetts community college. Just four special ed students were reported to have taken the SAT in 2009-10; SAT performance information is not reported for students enrollments of fewer than 10 students. In terms of Advanced Placement participation and performance, there was no data reported for special education students in 2009-10.


*All Data Taken from: http://www.doe.mass.edu/

A Look at Worcester's Special Education Population

In the Worcester public school system, special education students currently make up 20.7% of the student population; WPS has an enrollment of 24,808 with 5,142 students identified as 'special education.' This is a close look at Worcester's special education population.

Demographics

Below is how the special ed population breaks down in terms of demographics.

Asian	2.8%
Black/African American	12.3%
Hispanic	47.5%
Multiracial	3.7%
Native American	0.4%
White	33.4%

Female	35.9%
Male	64.1%

Low Income	78%
Limited English Proficiency	27.7%
First Lang. Not English	37.2%

The disabilities with the highest student counts in Worcester are:

• Specific Learning Disability (1,700)
• Intellectual Disability (753)
• Emotional (721)
• Communication (594)

The age with the highest student count is 16 (414 students) followed by 11 (402).

MCAS

Similar to Lynn, special ed students in Worcester were among the subgroups not making Adequate Yearly Progress at all grade levels in 2011. In 2011, students with disabilities had a 14% proficiency rate in English language arts  (ELA) exam and a 9% proficiency rate in math. The Composite Performance Indices (CPI) for special education students has decreased 1.1 points in ELA and  increased 1.5 points in math since 2008. CPIs are a measure of the extent to which students are progressing toward proficiency in ELA and math; the goal is a CPI of 100.  More specifically, each student participating in the MCAS is given a score based on well they perform on the exam which is later averaged to determine the school or subgroup's CPI; possible scores are 0 (Warning/Failing - Low), 25 (Warning/Failing - High), 50 (Needs Improvement - Low), 75 (Needs Improvement - High), and 100 (Proficient or Advanced). In 2011, the ELA CPI for students with disabilities was 53.9 while the math CPI was 44.9.

Educational Outcomes

In terms of educational outcomes, special education students in Worcester tend to graduate at a lower rate than 'general education' students. This is much in line with state trends as well as the trend seen in Lynn. See below for the graduation rates from 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	44.2%	51.3%	54.4%	49.1%	56.4%
General Ed	73.8%	74.6%	73.3%	76.8%	76.7%
All Students	67.2%	69.8%	69.2%	70.1%	71.4%

The graduation rate for this population decreased to 52.3% in 2011 for Worcester as a district.  Individual secondary schools in Worcester did vary in their graduation rates. At North High School, 35.1% of special education students graduated compared to a 55.1% graduation rate overall. Worcester Technical High School, on the other hand, had a 86.3% graduation rate in 2011 for special ed students with only 2.7% of this population dropping out over the four year period. Approximately, 20% of special education students required more than four years to complete high school.

Special ed students also tend to dropout at a higher rate than the general ed population. Below is the annual dropout rate for the years 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	6.0%	9.8%	7.9%	7.1%	6.7%
General Ed	3.8%	5.1%	4.0%	4.6%	3.0%
All Students	4.2%	6.0%	4.7%	5.1%	3.8%

The four year dropout rate for special ed students was 19.1% in 2011, down 5.7 percentage points from 2009. At the state level, special ed students had a 13.2% four year dropout rate.

In 2009-10, a little more than half of the special ed students were going to attend a college or university with 78% of this group attending a Massachusetts community college. Seventy-five special ed students were reported to have taken the SAT in 2009-10 with average scores of 347 in Reading, 342 in Writing, and 338 in Math (out of a possible 800 for each). In terms of Advanced Placement participation, six special education students took 11 AP exams in 2009-10 with the highest number of students taking the AP English Language Arts exam, followed by AP U.S. History. Of the 11 tests taken, 27.3% received a score between 3 and 5 (on a 5-point scale). 


*All Data Taken from: http://www.doe.mass.edu/

A Look at Lynn's Special Education Population

In Lynn public school system, special education students currently make up 16.5% of the student population. One hundred percent of Washington's student population is special ed while other schools vary in their percentages of this select population. This is a close look at Lynn's special education population.

Demographics

Below is how the special ed population breaks down in terms of demographics.

Asian	4.8%
Black/African American	15.8%
Hispanic	48.2%
Multiracial	4.4%
Native American	0.3%
White	26.5%

Female	33.5%
Male	66.5%

Low Income	84.1%
Limited English Proficiency	11.9%
First Lang. Not English	44.3%

The disabilities with the highest student counts in Lynn are:

• Specific Learning Disability (644)
• Intellectual Disability (412)
• Developmental Delay (330)
• Emotional (326)

The age with the highest student count is 13 (212 students) followed by 14 (202), 12 (197), and 11 (186).

MCAS

Special ed students were among the subgroups not making Adequate Yearly Progress at all grade levels in 2011. Students with disabilities had a 12% proficiency rate on the 2011 English language arts  (ELA) exam and a 9% proficiency rate on the math exam. Proficiency rates do vary for this group at individual schools. At Shoemaker, for example, students with disabilities had a 17% proficiency rate in ELA and a 22% proficiency rate in math; at Classical just 12% of students with disabilities received a 'Warning/Failing' grade on the ELA exam. The Composite Performance Indices (CPI) for special education students has increased 2 points in ELA and 1.5 points in math since 2009. CPIs are a measure of the extent to which students are progressing toward proficiency in ELA and math; the goal is a CPI of 100.  More specifically, each student participating in the MCAS is given a score based on well they perform on the exam which is later averaged to determine the school or subgroup's CPI; possible scores are 0 (Warning/Failing - Low), 25 (Warning/Failing - High), 50 (Needs Improvement - Low), 75 (Needs Improvement - High), and 100 (Proficient or Advanced). In 2011, the ELA CPI for students with disabilities was 60.8 while the math CPI was 51.6.

Educational Outcomes

In terms of educational outcomes, special education students in Lynn tend to graduate at a lower rate than 'general education' students. This is much in line with state trends. See below for the graduation rates from 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	40.2%	41.8%	44.1%	47.3%	44.0%
General Ed	69.7%	74.2%	75.6%	75.5%	74.3%
All Students	64.4%	68.5%	70.5%	70.7%	68.5%

The graduation rate for this population increased slightly to 48.1% in 2011 for Lynn as a district. Lynn has four secondary schools - Lynn English, Lynn Classical, Lynn Tech and Fecteau-Leary. At Lynn English, 56.6% of special education students graduated in four years or less; this figure was 59.1% at Lynn Classical, 45.3% at Lynn Tech and 19% at Fecteau-Leary.

Special ed students also tend to dropout at a higher rate than the general ed population. Below is the annual dropout rate for the years 2006 - 2010.

	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
Special Ed	11.4%	10.1%	11.1%	12.7%	10.9%
General Ed	4.3%	4.6%	4.9%	4.2%	4.4%
All Students	5.3%	5.4%	5.8%	5.4%	5.4%

The four year dropout rate for special ed students was 24.8% in 2011, down from 31.9%  in 2010. At the state level, special ed students had a 13.2% four year dropout rate.

In 2009-10, a little less than half of the special ed students were going to attend a college or university with 70.2% of this group attending a Massachusetts community college. Nineteen special ed students were reported to have taken the SAT in 2009-10 with average scores of 312 in Reading,  285 in Writing, and  331 in Math. In terms of Advanced Placement participation and performance, there was no data reported for special education students in 2009-10.


*All Data Taken from: http://www.doe.mass.edu/