|
Dear Parent(s)/Guardian(s), First, I would like to congratulate
our students and staff for the progress made on the C.A.T.S. test.
Our progress was identified in the non-adjustable score, but not
very significant in the adjusted score.
A concordance formula was used to link the old test and the new
test together due to all of the changes last year.
Most educators are confused by this adjustment since so many
variables were changed and the school’s accountability goal was not
adjusted. The school’s
accountability goal was based on the 1999 baseline data from the old
test. With all of the
changes, numerous data errors have occurred and the state has to make
adjustments as the data is corrected.
However, the reporting of the scores in the newspaper is not
reflective of the schools real improvement.
One of Huntertown’s biggest goals was to reduce the number of
novice. Since 1999 our
novice percentage has been in double digits with the highest percent
being 14.13%. This year our
novice percentage is 8.79% and that is the lowest it has ever been.
This is definitely something to celebrate!
After looking at our subject area scores, it was very evident
that Huntertown is improving and moving toward the 2014 goal of
proficiency. Our scores are
as follows;
Over 70% of the students scored distinguish or proficient in reading and over 61% scored distinguish or proficient in math. Last year, we had one student who scored proficient on the 5th grade on-demand test. This year 61% of the 5th grade students scored distinguish or proficient on the on-demand portion of the test. This is real progress! It appears that science is an area of improvement. Last Friday, the staff and I spent the entire day desegregating the data in all areas and developing a plan that will assist us in making the needed improvements. We have already aligned the new curriculum at each grade level, all grade levels have common units and assessments for each nine weeks and we have implemented a new writing program to improve writing skills. Further changes will be made with our Extended School Services (ESS), utilizing more hands on science resources and contacting agencies for speakers and programs in science. With your continued support, it is our goal to move forward to proficiency by 2014. Individual scores will be sent home with the student’s report card. Remember, “Together we Make a Difference”. |