THE CURRENT
School system sees increase in math, reading test scores
By Jessica Gould
July 15 , 2009
Current Staff Writer D.C. Public Schools students made gains in 2009, according to D.C. Comprehensive Assessment System test scores released by the school system on Monday. The biggest jump was in elementary school math, where 49 percent of students tested at the “proficient” level, compared with 40 percent last year. Forty-nine percent of elementary school students were proficient in reading, up from 46 percent last year.
Test scores for secondary school students also increased, officials said, but less dramatically. Forty one percent of secondary-school students were proficient in reading, a slight increase over last year’s 39 percent. And 40 percent of secondaryschool students were proficient in math, in comparison to 36 percent last year.
The numbers are even more striking compared with the scores from 2007, when Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee took control of the system. In 2007, only 38 percent of elementary school students were proficient in reading and only 29 percent were proficient in math. That same year, 30 percent of secondary school students were proficient in reading and 27 percent were proficient in math.
Rhee and Mayor Adrian Fenty often invoke the importance of data in determining D.C. Public Schools policy. They said yesterday’s scores — from annual exams given to third- through eighth-graders and 10th-graders — show that reform efforts are making a difference. “Two years in, we are diligently continuing to lay the foundation for sustainable school reform,” Fenty said in a release. “While the increases in DC-CAS scores are just one indication, it is powerful evidence of the incredible work being done by teachers, principals, and most importantly our students — across the District.”
In addition to the point gains in math and reading, the test scores released this week also demonstrate a narrowing of the difference inscores between black and white students. “The achievement gap between African American and white students continues to close across all grade levels and subject areas,” the release says, noting that the gap between secondary school math students closed 20 points — from 70 percent to 50 percent — over the past two years. Meanwhile, the achievement gap between elementary school students narrowed by eight points in math and six points in reading.
“Narrowing the achievement gap continues to be a top priority. It is our responsibility to do everything we can to ensure that every child in the District, regardless of their background and circumstances has the opportunity to realize their potential,” Rhee says in the release. Numbers released by the school system also demonstrate increased proficiency among special-education students, English language learners and the economically disadvantaged.
But one data set was less encouraging. Only 34 of the District’s 128 public schools made Adequate Yearly Progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act this year, a decrease from last year’s number. Twenty-eight elementary schools and six secondary schools met the requirements, the release says. D.C. Public Schools officials distributed the preliminary test scores to principals on Monday, but said it would be 10 days before individual school results are made public. Wilson High School principal Peter Cahall declined to discuss the specific scores, saying only, “We made progress.” Cahall said he was “pleased” but “not satisfied” with the results. “I think now it’s really drilling down in the data. You have to go kid by kid now; find out where kids are and what they need,” he said.
Charter schools also showed gains, according to Barnaby Towns, spokesperson for Friends of Choice in Urban Schools. Unlike D.C. Public Schools, he said charter schools’ biggest gains were in secondary schools. Reading proficiency increased from 46 percent to 53 percent, and math proficiency increased from 48 percent to 57 percent.
Meanwhile, elementary school students’ reading proficiency increased from 45 percent to 46 percent, he said, and elementary school math increased from 42 percent to 42.5 percent. Towns said the data shows that charter schools boost students’ achievement over time. “The longer D.C. kids stay in charter schools, the better they do,” he said.