NEW: Schools Improve on NECAP, but Goals Not Met
Friday, February 10, 2012
Rhode Island schools showed improvements on the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) tests, according to results released today.
Across all levels, 56% of Rhode Island students scored at proficient or better in mathematics, a 1% increase from last year, and 73% achieved proficient or better in reading, a 2% improvement. Still, the state fell short of most of the ambitious achievement goals set by the state and Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Deborah Gist.
Governor Chafee used the opportunity to encourage Rhode Islanders to continue focusing on improving the state’s struggling education system. “Rhode Island has recently received national recognition for our policies on teaching and learning, and it is important that we maintain our investment in public education, as I’ve called for in my 2013 budget,” he stated.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe assessment is the only multi-state education assessment in the country, being administered in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont as well. The tests are split between elementary, middle, and high school levels. All students are tested in reading and mathematics, while high school students are also tested in writing.
Elementary school scores remained level over the last year, with 62% proficient in mathematics and 70% proficient in reading.
High schoolers also stayed unchanged in reading, with 77% scoring at proficiency. 55% of them scored at proficiency for the writing section. However, a discouraging 30% achieved this level in the mathematics portion.
Middle schools saw the most encouraging figures. Up 3% from last year, 60% of students were proficient in mathematics. Also, 74% gained proficiency in reading, an increase of 4% from 2010.
The state also released information concerning four and five-year graduation rates for Rhode Island high schools, as well as achievement information on minority groups. The four-year graduation rate remained the same, at 77%, while the five-year rate increased by 1% to 80%. Students with disabilities, Hispanic students, and students for whom English is a second language saw their achievement gaps widen, while African-American students and students living in poverty saw their gaps narrow.
Since the inception of the NECAP assessment in 2005 for grades 3-8 and in 2007 for grade 11, scores have continually risen, but not as quickly as the state has hoped. Elementary schools have aggregately seen a 10% rise in proficiency in mathematics and reading. Middle schools have risen 12% in mathematics and 17% in reading. High schools have seen improvements of 15% in reading and 8% in mathematics. However, of Rhode Island’s 31 goals regarding assessment performances, the state only met four.
Commissioner Gist remains optimistic. “Because of our many current initiatives- including mentoring for all new teachers, transition to the internationally benchmarked Common Core standards, and implementation of educator evaluations- I am confident that our schools will continue to improve and our students will attain even higher levels of achievement,” she said.
The Commissioner commended a few “pockets of excellence” in the wake of the release. Blackstone Valley Prep Elementary School improved mathematics proficiency by a whopping 25%, and Central Falls Senior High raised its four-year graduation rate to 71%, up 17% from 2010. The North Smithfield School District improved its writing proficiency by about 20% at the high school level, and the Learning Community Charter School improved its mathematics proficiency by 15%.
Compared to Rhode Island’s competitors in the NECAP, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, the state fell in the middle. Students matched those in New Hampshire in high school reading scores and surpassed Vermont by 4%. In high school writing, Rhode Islanders were excitingly the top scorers, but were left in last place in mathematics proficiency.
George Caruolo, Chairman of the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education, stated that he is “concerned about the continued low achievement level in high-school mathematics, where we need to see significant improvement.” However, the mood remained optimistic, as Caruolo commended “all teachers and students for the improvements on the NECAP exams.”
