NYC student test scores are better, but still not very good

Last year, 5 percent opted out.

The city’s modest test-score gains were shared by every racial and ethnic group, though not every grade. Unionized teachers in New York have been upset about plans to evaluate teachers based on test scores, and they also promoted boycotting the tests. “Whether they’re up or down, they tell us virtually nothing meaningful about students or their teachers”, she said.

“There’s value to these tests for us”, he said.

“It’s clear to me that we must do a better job of supporting our teachers and principals as they continue to shift their practice to the higher learning standards”, she said.

Revised English and math standards based on the national Common Core guidelines for student learning were fully implemented for the first time last school year. Wednesday’s full data confirmed that, with some local districts seeing as many as double the opt-outs week over week.

In Nyack, 34 percent of students in grades 3-8 showed proficiency in 2015, no change from 2014.

Missouri students did well on last spring’s math and English language arts MAP (Missouri Assessment Program) tests, state officials said this week.

“This year, there was a significant increase in the number of students refusing the annual assessments”, said chancellor of the state Board of Regents, Merryl Tisch. “The parents of those students now know how they are moving towards the higher standards that are in place in New York state”.

Vandeven gave two possible reasons for the math numbers.

Unknown, and perhaps unknowable: precisely what scores in the rest of the state would be if overprotective parents of some 20% of students hadn’t barred kids from the exams, largely stoked by accountability-fearing teachers unions. All results were in the 50 percent range for students scoring advanced or proficient, with fifth grade topping out at 59.1 percent.

More of the county’s 4-6 grade students scored proficient in both math and ELA. Proficiency rates at charter schools increased from 28 percent to 29.3 percent in English, and from 43.9 percent to 44.2 percent in math. Those rates have improved at a slower rate than the district-school averages. That’s up from just five percent the year before.

Mike Fulton, superintendent of the Pattonville School District, said that the state numbers can be useful, even if there is only one year’s worth of data, but they will have to be viewed in a different way.

Math scores were better, with 38.1 percent of students reaching proficiency, up from 36.2 percent in 2014 and 31.1 percent in 2013.

In Pearl River, 55 percent showed proficiency in 2015, compared to 49 percent in 2014.

But the number of opt outs – jumping from 5 percent of students in 2014 to 20 percent this year – raised new concerns for state education officials who urged parents and students to take the tests so children’s improvement can be accurately monitored.

It turns out that West Seneca was the epicenter of the opt-out movement in Western New York. The figures confirm that last spring saw the biggest revolt yet against what critics say is an excessive regimen of high-stakes, time-consuming standardized tests. There, the students deemed proficient in English went up from 12 percent to 14 percent this year.