Small success

This year 180 school districts in Missouri received Distinction in Performance awards recognizing the academic achievements of their students. The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education gave the awards to 15 districts in Southeast Missouri. They include the Altenburg and Kelso elementary school districts and the K-12 districts at Delta, Leopold, Marquand-Zion, Oak Ridge, Oran and Zalma.

Missouri Assessment Program test scores, ACT scores, attendance and dropout rates were evaluated in assessing the performance of each district in the state.

Larger schools with a greater diversity of students did mot measure up to the awards' academic standards.

It is telling that all of these districts are small. The largest of the award winners has fewer than 400 students. Academic success is attributed to smaller class sizes and community involvement.

Many programs are underway in larger school districts to restore the parental involvement and the desire to achieve that is prevalent in small districts. Based on the results on small districts in Southeast Missouri, that appears to be a worthwhile goal.