State Superintendent Randy Dorn just finished discussing the state results from the spring Measurements of Student Progress and High School Proficiency Exams, and one thing is clear: math scores are up for almost every grade.
But despite more students passing math tests, schools across the state are still struggling to meet federal benchmarks, as required by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (No Child Left Behind).
MSP/HSPE
Across the state’s 295 school districts, more students in grades 4 through 7 passed the math test this spring, with the largest gain in the fifth grade, where the percentage of students meeting standard rose by 7.6 percent. Part of the reason behind the large increase may be due to the fact that students in grade 5 struggled with the test the previous year.
This is the second year students in grades 3-8 were tested on the newly updated state math standards.
For high school students, this was the first year they were tested in math at the end of the school year, after finishing their math class. About 66 percent of students (grades 6-12) passed the algebra 1 test and about 74 percent passed the geometry test (grades 6-12). Students are required to pass one of the tests to graduate; students in the class of 2015 will be required to pass both.
Reading scores were mixed, with the percentage of 6th grade students passing the test increasing by 6 percentage points, and the percentage of 7th graders passing dropping by 7 percentage points.
Writing scores were about the same statewide as compared to last year, but science scores increased dramatically, especially in 5th grade, where the percentage of students passing increased by 21 percentage points.
However, students in grades 5 and 8 were tested on new science standards this time around, making comparisons difficult since the test changed.
I will be spending the rest of the week digging deeper into the numbers for Whatcom County schools, but if you want to look at your school know, click here.
AYP
According to the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, schools and districts must make “Adequate Yearly Progress” and show they are working to make sure all students are at standard by 2014. AYP tracks a school and district’s progress in reaching that goal. Across the state 1,388 schools didn’t make AYP – that represents about 64 percent of the state’s schools.
In Washington, AYP is determined by looking at a combination of High School Proficiency Exam and Measurements of Student Progress scores, graduation rates and attendance records. In all, schools and districts must meet standards in 37 categories.
If schools or districts fail to meet standard in the same category for two or more years in a row, they are considered “in improvement” and face possible sanctions.
According to Alan Burke with OSPI, many of the schools that did make AYP are small and therefore didn’t have enough students in some categories to count.
In Whatcom County, all seven school districts and 39 schools (including Lummi schools) failed to make AYP.
I will be spending the rest of the week digging deeper into the numbers, but here is a quick overview of things I noticed in Whatcom County school districts.
More details about AYP will be coming soon.
The OSPI press release is below.
Calling his transformation of the state’s testing system close to complete, State Superintendent Randy Dorn released official scores today from spring 2011 state testing, including from the first math end-of-course exams, or EOCs.
Last spring, all students in algebra 1 and geometry took state exams at the end of those specific courses in June instead of the traditional high school comprehensive math exam two months before the end of the school year.
Students passed the Year 1 exams (algebra 1/integrated 1/makeup) at a rate of 66 percent and the Year 2 exams (geometry/integrated 2) at a 74 percent clip. The EOCs assessed the state’s new high school math learning standards for the first time.
“The results from the end-of-course exams are encouraging, but we still have plenty of work to do to increase our math scores,” Dorn said. “I believe the first-time passing rates are improved from the days of the old math WASL for two primary reasons: teachers have told me our new math learning standards are clearer and students are taking the exams at the end of their respective classes.”
Math scores on the grades 3-8 Measurements of Student Progress increased in every grade, except eighth. Spring 2011 marked the second year grades 3-8 students were tested on the new math elementary and middle school learning standards.
“We have made math a high priority in this state, so it’s gratifying to see the improvement,” Dorn said. “I give our state’s educators a lot of credit. This has been a statewide effort, from the people who wrote the new math standards to those who teach our students. We must maintain this positive momentum.”
All state testing scores from spring 2011 are available at the state’s Report Card site athttp://reportcard.ospi.k12.wa.us.
Changing the state’s testing system
When Dorn took office in January 2009, he vowed to make “common sense changes” to the testing system. He replaced the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) with shorter, equally rigorous tests: the grades 3-8 Measurements of Student Progress (MSP) and High School Proficiency (HSPE).
He also moved the MSP online, a necessary step to take advantage of technology and to create efficiencies in the testing system. Moving testing to computers saves resources by decreasing the printing, shipping and storage of test booklets, and provides a more secure environment.
Dorn said he will work with district superintendents and the state Legislature to encourage more schools to participate in online testing. It is now voluntary. This spring, grade 3 students will take the MSP online for the first time in reading and math. Last spring, students in grades 4-8 took more than 300,000 tests online in reading, math and science, which is approximately 30 percent of tests taken in those grades.
“Technology should play a major role in education,” Dorn said. “Online testing is less disruptive to the schools and the classroom environment. Eighty-two percent of students surveyed said they prefer to take tests on the computer rather than paper. We need to listen to them. If my school is not participating in online testing, I would sure want to know why.”
Dorn said the transition to end-of-course exams is the final major move in transforming the state testing system. EOCs allow for students to feel more confident by testing on material they learned throughout the school year, he said. In spring 2012, high school students will take a biology end-of-course exam, which will replace the comprehensive HSPE science exam.
“We need three years of data on any new exam before we can reliably evaluate results,” Dorn said. “But I feel confident that students will perform better on end-of-course exams.”
Grades 3-8 Measurements of Students Progress
Students in grades 5 and 8 were assessed on the state’s new science standards for the first time in spring 2011. Like the math MSP last year, science MSP scores create a new benchmark and do not provide an apples-to-apples comparison of previous elementary and middle school science results.
Students in grades 5 and 8 passed the science MSP at a rate of 55 percent and 62 percent, respectively.
“As I’ve said before, increasing our students’ proficiency in science is a bigger challenge than in math,” Dorn said. “We teach reading, writing and math every day in all grades, but the same can’t be said for science. We need more quality science instruction in our schools, especially if we are holding our students to a science graduation requirement when they reach high school.”
Like math, Dorn said teachers have provided feedback that the new science standards are clearer and provide better direction on what students should be learning.
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
In 2011, preliminary figures show that 1,388 schools did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), an increase of a little more than 200 schools from 2010. Of that total, 1,181 are in one of five steps of improvement. For districts, 223 did not make AYP and 113 are in one of two steps of improvement.AYP is part of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act, otherwise known as No Child Left Behind. Under AYP, all schools and districts will have a specific – and growing – percentage of students passing the state’s reading and math tests each year. All states are required to have a goal that all students in all schools pass the reading and math tests by 2014.
“Under AYP in 2014, a school or district could have 99 percent of its students at proficiency and still be deemed as needing improvement,” Dorn said. “This is a highly flawed law.
“Congress has had four years to act on reauthorization and has done nothing. I’ve not read one comment from a member of Congress who thinks No Child Left Behind, as written, is good for students or schools. Those who represent us in the other Washington must do their jobs and do what is right in bringing some realistic expectations to AYP.”
Schools and districts that do not meet AYP goals for two consecutive years move into “improvement” status and, if they receive federal Title I funds, face an escalating series of consequences each year they do not make AYP. Washington uses the Measurements of Student Progress the High School Proficiency Exams and end-of-course exams as its tests to measure AYP. (See “What is AYP?” for more details.)
New graduation rate calculation
Next year, all states will be required to use graduation rates for AYP using the same calculation formula recommended by the National Governor’s Association. This will create a more uniform graduation measure throughout the nation.This year, Washington is reporting two graduation rates on its Report Card site (current and new) as it transitions to the new formula, which requires the tracking of individual students using a state identification number. Many states have seen significant drops in their graduation rates using the new formula, but Washington’s rates decreased only slightly.
Under Washington’s calculation, the extended graduation rate of five years increased to more than 80 percent for the first time this year at 82.6 percent. Using the new federal calculation, that rate is still more than 80 percent at 80.7 percent.
“I support the move to a more uniform graduation rate,” Dorn said. “Under either formula, our extended graduation rate is above 80 percent, and that is tremendous news. We are improving in that area, but that still means one out of every five students is not earning a diploma. I applaud our schools for tackling the dropout issue and believe we will continue to make progress.”
Money should be spent so teachers could go back to school and earn advanced degrees in math and science as was the case in the 60′s.
“64% of schools not making the grade”
1) Time for school vouchers
OR
2) Throw more money at the problem (Typical liberal solution)
Hmm, what to do, what to do?
Umm…really Kira?
Five years ago 72.8% of 3rd graders in Bellingham were proficient in math, last year 64.2% passed the MSP test.
Five years ago 69.3% of 4th graders in Bellingham were proficient in math, last year 63.2% passed the MSP test.
Five years ago 68.7% of 5th graders in Bellingham were proficient in math, last year 67.3% passed the MSP test.
That’s not exactly progress.
Fairhaven Fact Checker… Comparing the scores from 5 years ago to those from today is like comparing apples to oranges. The standards being tested then were different than those being tested for now. Also, the test used was different. In many cases, for example in elementary math, skills that were previously taught in one grade level were pushed back into the previous year or sometimes even two years when the new standards went into effect. Makes it kind of difficult to show clear “progress.”
I’m not sure I agree memabu…
First of all the MSP and WASL are not much different. If anything the MSP tests are LESS rigorous because they are shorter, and contain a higher percentage of multiple choice questions. Besides the current math standards were adopted in 2008, so they can’t really be considered “new” any more.
I’d say it’s more like comparing tangerines to oranges personally. The fact is, one out of three elementary students in Bellingham is not proficient in math. At some schools that number is closer to one out of every two. I think we can do a lot better memabu, and I suspect you probably do too.
Fact Checker, as memabu pointed out, the standards have changed from what they were 5 years ago (they changed summer 2008). Skills and concepts that were not expected to be mastered until 4th grade are now expected to be mastered at 3rd grade and so on… As the standards changed, so have the assessments. The other change (at least for our district) is a new math curriculum adoption. Teachers have a learning curve become proficient in using the new materials and it takes time to figure out what areas of the new math standards are not adequately covered by the new curriculum. The areas not covered then need to be supplemented by other sources. Much of this information comes from a deep analysis of assessment data, to figure out which math strands or concepts students are not scoring well on, and boosting instruction in those areas.
With that said, although the scores improved from what they were last year, there is still lots of room for improvement.
Wow…the excuses for failure are rolling in now. New curriculum…please! Bellingham has been using the same constructivist drivel for over a decade. Just because it has new packaging, doesn’t make it a new curriculum. What next? Blame the parents?
FFC, of course you can’t blame the parents, we all know it’s Bush’s fault.
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