SCORES ON GRADES 3-8 STATE TESTS FALL SIGNIFICANTLY ACROSS NEW YORK;
NORTH SHORE DECLINES MORE MODEST

August 7 -- This morning, New York State Education officials released school test results for the grades 3-8 English Language Arts (ELA) and Math assessments.  The numbers state-wide showed a significant drop in the percentage of students achieving  proficiency - scores of 3 (meeting expectations) and 4 (exceeding expectations) - compared to last year.   On the math assessments they declined by more than 50%. 
 
   Declines for the North Shore School District were significantly more modest than what took place state-wide.  The percentage of students in North Shore achieving proficiency was close to 20% higher than the county average.

     Expectations going into the release of the results were that test scores would show a more than 30% decline over last year because the assessments were based on the new, more rigorous  “Common Core” learning standards adopted by New York and 44 other states.  Many districts have still been adapting teaching methodologies and curriculum to the new benchmark.  In addition, the methodology for determining cut-off scores was changed for this year's tests.  
 
     In March, New York State  Deputy Commissioner of Education, Ken Slentz, sent a memorandum to school districts across the state informing them that the new ELA and Math tests that were to be administered the following month would not be “norm referenced," as in the past, but rather “criterion referenced.”  In other words instead of cut off scores being based on how students performed across the state – comparing students to each other, they would be based on a pre-set standard.    

    School District, state and  federal education officials have been trying to brace parents and students for this decline for the past several months.

    Mr. Slentz warned school district officials across the state, that the percentages of students receiving 3’s and 4’s was likely to decline, but that that should “not necessarily be interpreted as a decline in student learning or as a decline in educator performance.”  
 
     In an early March E-mail to parents, North Shore Schools Superintendent, Dr. Edward Melnick, notified parents of the change, quoting sections of Mr. Slentz' memorandum, and including the document at the bottom of his correspondence.  He wrote,  “The Common Core Learning Standards have demanded significant shifts in what we teach  and the way in which we teach.     The New York State  Education Department has issued a memorandum, in which they state, ‘Because  the new tests are designed to determine whether students are meeting a higher performance standard, we expect fewer students will perform at or above  grade-level Common Core expectations than was the case with prior years’ State tests.’“

    Just a day ago, Arne Duncan, the federal Secretary of Education, issued a statement to minimize the political impact of the lower scores saying that New York State is to be commended for raising the bar, and that students, parents and school officials should not be alarmed by the results.

    In a statement posted on his Facebook page earlier today, State Senator Carl Marcellino (R-Oyster Bay), expressed concerns on how the results might be interpreted.  "Before panic sets in," he wrote, "we must remember that the final scores of the 2013 tests are not the clearest method of evaluating the effectiveness of a tercher's performance or a student's achievement in the classroom."  

    Observing that New York is the only state out of the 45 who are members of the Common Core coalition to administer tests using the new standards, the Senator commented, "Perhaps this fact alone demonstrates that the NYS Education Department may have moved too quickly."  He then called on State Education Commissioner John King to "alleviate unnecessary fear and anxiety and make an official proclamation that clearly states that student and teacher evaluations for 2013 will not be negatively impacted by these tests."

    The last time cut off scores were re-calibrated, in 2010, districts across New York State also saw significant declines in the percentages of students acheiving proficiency levels on the assessments, leading many, including the North Shore Schools to place much greater emphasis on test preparation. 
(story by. T. Madden)

FULL RESULTS AND NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION NEWS RELEASE CAN BE FOUND BY CLICKING HERE.

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Table: Northwordnews, 2013
Table:  Northwordnews, 2013