The Edmond Sun

Education

Discussion

October 6, 2009

Edmond schools score high in testing

Patty Miller

EDMOND — Edmond schools are ahead of the game when it comes to students’ performances on the Academic Performance Index, an official said this week.

In Monday night’s monthly school board meeting, Linda DeSpain, associate superintendent of curriculum services, reported all the Edmond schools and the Edmond Public School District made Adequate Yearly Progress on last year’s tests.

Any school or school district that fails to make AYP within any subgroup of students for two consecutive years based on the same subject will be designated School Improvement Schools/Districts, DeSpain said.

Key federal No Child Left Behind provisions include data collected for math and Language Arts in grades 3-8 and high school End of Instruction tests in Algebra I (usually ninth-grade) and English II (10th-grade).

As the State Department of Education increases math and reading performance targets to 1500 in the next five years, Edmond schools are keeping up.

For 2008-09 schools were accountable for all students to reach the state’s target. Edmond district students scored 1454 compared to the state’s target of 932 in API Math; and students scored 1476 compared to 914 in API Reading.

In the next five years, by 2014 the state has performance target increases until all students in all schools and all districts across the state are making 1500 in math and reading.

Compared to other 6A Districts Edmond Public Schools scores high in API scores. Scores include: Edmond, 1450; Jenks Public Schools, 1424; Owasso Public Schools, 1424; Stillwater Public Schools, 1408; Moore Public Schools, 1401; Norman Public Schools, 1400; and Mid-Del Public Schools, 1316.

“Our score of 1450 for the district showed a one point increase,” DeSpain said, “and we are very pleased.”

The State Department of Education keeps changing the game, DeSpain said, making it difficult for schools to earn scores of 1350 or greater.

“Thirteen of 23 schools in the Edmond district scored more than 1450 including the three high schools,” DeSpain said. “That is awesome.

“We not only try to raise the bar and close the gap, but we are trying to bring the lower (scoring) students’ (grades) up.”



API factors

On the high school level remediation rates were: Edmond Memorial, 11.9 percent; Edmond North, 11.1 percent and Santa Fe 17.3 percent. The state average for remediation is 36.9 percent.

DeSpain reported high school ACT scores indicating readiness for college course work have steadily gone up since 2005, with a slight dip in 2007. Scores were: 23.1 composite in 2005; 23.2 composite in 2006; 22.9 composite in 2007; 23.3 composite in 2008; and 23.5 composite in 2009.

Students going out of state to schools do not take the ACT test, or the ACT scores would probably be higher, DeSpain said.

“We continue to stress high performance for upper students,” DeSpain said.

The statistics show the job being done to prepare students for a college education, said David Goin, superintendent.

“We want our students to be college and work ready for the students who choose an alternate path,” Goin said.

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