The data released Tuesday is based on the students’ CSAP test scores. A student, school and district are placed in four categories of achievement in different areas of study. They are categorized as unsatisfactory, partially proficient, proficient and advanced in the areas of math, reading, writing for grades three through 10; students in grades five, eight and 10 are tested in science.
The state’s goal, and goal set by No Child Left Behind, is that every student test proficient or advanced by 10th grade.
|
Advertisement |
The 2008 CSAP results showed 10th-grade students scoring proficient or advanced in math was only 26 percent; 33 percent scored unsatisfactory.
Ninth-grade students also scored low. Only 34 percent scored proficient or advanced; 34 percent scored unsatisfactory.
The state’s percentage of student’s scoring proficient or advanced was 30 percent of 10th-graders; 38 percent of ninth-graders.
The same was true for the rest of the district’s grade levels; most falling behind the state’s average percent for proficient or advanced by 2 to 12 percent.
Writing scores
The number of students scoring proficient or advanced in writing for the district was also behind the state’s average by 4 to 8 percent.
However, unsatisfactory scores for grade levels were not as high as those for math. The highest unsatisfactory percent was in 10th grade with 9 percent. Most scores fell in the partially proficient to proficient categories.
Looking at individual schools, Cottonwood Elementary School’s fifth grade scored the highest with 71 percent proficient or advanced. Olathe Elementary third-graders had the lowest number at 16 percent.
“Both Northside and Olathe Elementary will have all-day kindergarten (starting this school year),” said Gann. “One of the proven strategies indicates that if you can get a child reading by first grade the chances for success later on is so much higher.”
The schools are piloting the program with funding from the Governor’s Office.
“We are seeing a priority for early childhood development,” Gann said.
Reading scores
The same trend is seen in the district’s reading scores. Looking at the percent of proficient or advanced, the district is slightly behind the state’s average percent. However, 64 percent of third-graders scored proficient or advanced, the same as the state.
Looking at individual schools, many schools were in the 50 to 70 percents for students scoring proficient or advanced. Low percentages also existed. Olathe Elementary third-graders again had a low number with only 39 percent scoring proficient or advanced and 25 percent scoring unsatisfactory.
However, the data also shows the percentage of students on free or reduced lunch. Besides Passage Charter School, Olathe Elementary had the highest enrollment in the program with about 71 percent.
Science scores: Grades 3, 5, 10
All three grades in the district were about even in the percentage of students scoring unsatisfactory, partially proficient, proficient or advanced. These number were about equal to the state’s percentages.
However, in 2007, CDE adopted new model content standards for science. The 2008 science results are not comparable to earlier results because they test new standards, according to CDE. This could attribute to the lower district and state percentages for proficient or advanced.
Though many of the schools and the district in general, scored below the state average and did not meet the goal of 100 percent proficient or advanced, measuring if students’, schools’ and districts’ growth from year to year is equally important, according to CDE. That is why educators have been spending more than a decade developing the Colorado Growth Model.
The 2007 growth model results are available online for individual districts. The model breaks down the scores by school and shows if schools are scoring above proficient according to state standards. At the same time, it shows the schools’ growth percentile, which is based on the state standard. Growth percentile is important because it shows if a school is providing the knowledge and skills that allow students to improve, according to CDE.
The 2007 growth model for Montrose can be viewed by visiting www.cde.state.co.us. Click on “Accreditation.” Then click on the link, “2007 Colorado Growth Model District & School Reports.” Find Montrose County and click on the link. People can view individual schools and testing areas.
The 2008 growth model will be released in mid-August.
Contact Kati O’Hare via e-mail at katio@montrosepress.com
• Be respectful of others, the writer and the subjects in the story.
• Be relevant. Keep your comments on point.
• See the guidelines for TalkAbout. Perhaps your comment is best for that community forum, available from the home page, instead of commenting on a particular story.
Comment posters are responsible for the opinions they express and the accuracy of the information they provide. We urge comment writers to treat this as a public forum where manners matter. We encourage a collegial, non-insulting tone. All readers comments must be approved by our staff before posting to the Web site. Be aware, in accordance with the Communications Decency Act and provisions upheld in judicial appeal, that you are responsible for comments posted on this Web site. Montrose Press is not liable for messages from third parties.
DO NOT POST:
* Potentially libelous statements or damaging innuendo.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults or threats.
* The use of another person's real name to disguise your identity.
* Comments unrelated to the story.
Opinions, advice and all other information expressed in montrosepress.com's reader comments represent the individual's own views and not necessarily those of the Montrose Press. Montrose Press does not endorse and is not responsible for statements, advice or opinions offered by anyone other than authorized Montrose Press spokespersons.
Thank you for your comments!