WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. August 15, 2011:
In Grades 4 to 9 starting school in 2 weeks in September, data from the New York State Education Department, analyzed by WPCNR show the district must address approximately 1,339 children of 2,549 taking the English Language Arts Assessment Tests, who did not achieve English proficiency on their May ELA Achievement test.
Approximately 208 Freshmen of some 500 starting high school in 9th grade at the high school in September will have failed to pass the ELA 8th Grade Assessment in May
The 2011 school district beat the increased passing scores by a wide margin in Grades 3,4 and 6 (3 of the six grades tested) on the English Language Arts assessments
Though scores improved in the elementary grades, middle school assessment scores showed 7th and 8th graders failed at a rate 10% behind the new passing standards, and Grade 3 performed 3% less than the state target.
This happened to 3rd graders on the Math Assessment Test as well). This trend on third grade results could mean more children are not as prepared entering Kindergarten,first and second grades.
Math performance on the 2011 assessments was encouraging, 4 of the 6 grades met or surpassed the new passing standards.
Grades 4,6, 7 and 8 met the higher passing Math standards of 2011. Grade 4 tripled the new passing rate target set by the state and Grade 6 passed at four times what the state expected.
The stepped-up preparation and intervention measures instituted by first year Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, Jessica O’Donovan, equaled, doubled and tripled the new state passing standards in four of the six grades (3 through 8) on the 2011 statement assessments.
O’Donovan, in a statement last week to WPCNR said she felt the efforts were productive but it would take three years to move performance ahead substantially. Analysis of the 2009-10 and 2010-11 test scores by WPCNR show the improvement O’Donovan’s approach was able to achieve.
The Challenge of higher passing scores weathered, met.
To understand where the May 2011 Assessments show we are as a school district, it is important to show what the state expected when it raised the new passing standards one year ago.
Last fall, the district showed how new passing scores ordained by the State Department of Education in response to New York achievement test scores falling behind other states, would be going up and would affect the number of students passing the assessments last year. Assistant Superintendent O’Donovan, in her first two months on the job, designed a remedial effort consisting of pull-out instruction blocks for students identified as at risk for failing the assessments and put more emphasis on reading and understanding.
In the New York State English Language 2011 assessments administered in May, the Passing Scores for Level 3 (Proficient) were raised by the state as follows for each grade. The district teachers had a big challenge.
2011 New ELA Passing Score LIFT Pct. Increase to Meet
Grade 8 650 to 658–8 points 1.2 %
Grade 7 650 to 664 -14 points 2.2%
Grade 6 650 to 662 –12 points 1.8%
Grade 5 650 to 666 – 16 points 2.5%
Grade 4 650 to 668 – 18 points 2.8%
Grade 3 650 to 662 – 12 points 1.8%
To maintain the White Plains passing standards of the past, remedial efforts had to raise scores 1.2% at the 8th grade level in the ELA test, with the maximum increase needed to be 2.8% at the fourth grade level, where the district has been concentrating its efforts.
The fourth Grade 2011 ELA performance was gangbusters, increasing passing performance by 8%.
In Math, the passing scores demanded the district make more progress as follows:
2011 New MATH Pass Score LIFT PCT. INCR. TO MEET
Grade 8 650 to 673– 23 points 3.5%
Grade 7 650 to 670—20 points 3.1%
Grade 6 650 to 674 – 24 points 3.7%
Grade 5 650 to 674—24 points 3.7%
Grade 4 650 to 676—26 points 4.6%
Grade 3 650 to 684—34 points 5.2%
In math the district was challenged to raise scores 3.5% at the eighth grade level, 3.1% at the seventh grade level
How did they do?
Lower Grades Held own in May English Language Arts Assessments.
Upper Grades Entering High School did not.
In the 2010 English Assessments, scored with the new passing grades in effect, 57% of 8th graders passed the ELA Achievement.
In the May Assessment scores just released last week for 2011 the passing rate for both seventh and eight graders declined to 52.7%
This is a percentage decline of 8% far below the 1.2% increase demanded in the passing scores set by the state for those two grades
The inescapable fact that cries out is 47.3% of 488 eight graders, approximately 230 children did not pass their ELA Achievement in May and are “not proficient” in English going into White Plains High School in September.
Seventh graders in 2011 failed to meet the higher passing standard by 2.2% increase in ELA passing scores.
In the 2010 assessment, scored with the new passing standards, 57.7% of seventh graders passed.
Despite the district efforts with seventh graders in 2010-11, the seventh grade class saw the number of passing decline to 52.3%– 9% less passing than in 2010. That translates into approximately 248 eighth graders beginning in September that the district has to upgrade to proficiency.
Looking at those scores another way, about half of seventh and eighth grade students failed to meet English Proficiency standards. Half. It is worth thinking about that word.
ENG LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT SCORES 2011 COMPARED TO 2010
2010 2011
ELA Pct. Pass Fail Pct Pass Fail YTY + –
Grade 8 57% 43% 52..7% 47.3% -8%
Grade 7 57.2% 43% 52.3 47.7% -9%
Grade 6 54.1% 46% 59% 41% +9%
Grade 5 54.4% 45.6% 52.6% 47.4% -3%
Grade 4 52.2% 45.8% 56.3% 43.7 +8%
Grade 3 53.6% 46.4% 57.2% 42.8% +7%
This result occurred despite the efforts of the district through curriculum changes toclose achievement gaps with last year’s 7th and 8th grade groups and upgrade English Language Arts skill ever since they were fourth graders.
It is encouraging though to see that the 3rd , 4th, and 6th grade scores improved well ahead of state passing targets, double and quadruple the percentage rise in the new passing scores.
Lower Grade Turnaround Efforts Effective.
Improvement twice and four times the percentages of passing score increases seen in the 3rd and 4th grade and 6th grade scores indicate O’Donovan’s program made a big difference in those classes. Unfortunately, the 7th and 8th grade classes did not achieve a similar level of success in their younger years.
Jessica O’Donovan, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction was charged with upgrading the scores “from behind” due to the higher passing scores, in her first year with the district.
She defended the reading intervention in the Middle and High Schools, saying the results “did not fall short in my opinion,” and told WPCNR “significant increases will take far more time—a minimum of three years. Scores decreased 20% (automatically) between 2009-10 when new (passing) standards were implemented.”
O’Donovan said she was pleased at ELA scores in grades 3,4,6 and increases in Math in grades 4, 6, 7, 8.
Math Side
On the Math Side the scores break down this way during the two years the new passing scores have been in effect.
MATH ASSESSMENT SCORES 2011 COMPARED TO 2010
2010 2011
PASSED FAILED PASSED FAILED YTY+-
GRADE 8 71.5% 28.5% 71.5% 28.5% 0
GRADE 7 69.2% 30.8% 69.9% 30.1 +1%
GRADE 6 61.6% 38.4% 69.4% 30.5% +13%
GRADE 5 63.9% 36.1% 60.1% 39.9% – 5%
GRADE 4 59.9% 39.1% 66.6% 33.4% +11%
GRADE 3 60.7% 39.3% 58% 42% -4.4%
The chart shows the district doubled the target passing score increase in two of the six grades, the 6th and 4th grades,,including the key developing 4th grade, but falling short of surpassing the passing score increases in 3rdand 5th grade, which might be some cause for concern.
The Grade 8, Grade 7 examinees in math failed to surpass the increased Passing Score targets (which were raised 3%) yet the district did not improve or fall back in the overall percentage of passers in the 7th and 8th grades on Math.
The breakdown of those who did not pass the Math Assessments works out to an average of 32.6% or about 1/3. failing to achievement proficiency in math.
Children Left Behind– ENGLISH
The following indicates by grade, how many children in grades 3 to 8 did not pass the 2011 Achievement Tests in English Language Arts and Math whom the district must bring up to passing this year.
MAY 2011 ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS ASSESSMENT
SNAPSHOT
CHILDREN BEHIND ENTERING 2011-12
GRADE ENTERING TESTED PASSED FAILED # FAILED
8 9 486 52.7% 47.3% 231
7 8 524 52.3% 47.7% 249
6 7 473 59% 41% 193
5 6 493 52.6% 47.4% 234
4 5 513 56.3% 43.7% 224
3 4 486 57% 42.9% 208
TOTALS 2,549 52.5% 47.5% 1,339
The sobering realization the district faces is that of upgrading English Language Profiency in almost half their students in grades 3 through 9.
CHILDREN LEFT BEHIND – MATH
MAY 2011 MATH ASSESSMENT
SNAPSHOT
CHILDREN BEHIND ENTERING 2011-12
GRADE ENTERING TESTED PASSED FAILED # FAILED
8 9 498 71.5% 28.5% 142
7 8 530 69.9% 30.1% 159
6 7 479 69.3% 30.7% 147
5 6 498 60.1% 39.9% 198
4 5 517 66.5% 33.5% 173
3 4 491 58.3% 41.9% 205
TOTALS 2,563 60% 40% 1,024
The two charts show that despite the better passing percentages in math, 1,024 children in Grades 3 through 9 have not shown Proficiency in Math.
Approximately 1,339 District children are in need of serious intervention on English skills and 1,024 require remediation in math, in addition to moving ahead with new academics as they enter the school year in September.
Reviewing the percentages by which the passing scores were raised by the state, and the performances of the May 2011 White Plains scores, the 2011 school district maintained their performance in the lower grades but have a long way to go.
