Friday, September 29, 2000

Gains on tests to pay off for N.Ky. schools

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By Lori Hayes
The Cincinnati Enquirer

        More than half of Northern Kentucky's public schools improved enough on last year's state tests to get a slice of the millions in state reward money.

Fifth grade teacher Pat Surber (right) explains the results of Kenna Lawson's test to Kenna's father, Sammy Jent, on Thursday at Ninth District School. (Patrick Reddy photo) | ZOOM |

        Scores from the 2000 Commonwealth Accountability Testing System, or CATS, were released Thursday. A combination of test scores and other success indicators such as dropout and attendance rates, the 2-year-old assessment system is used to grade schools on their progress.

        Schools that improved get rewards; schools that fell behind get state help. And those that didn't improve or decline enough to merit rewards or assistance were designated as “maintaining.”

        Of the 95 schools in Northern Kentucky — Boone, Campbell, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton and Pendleton counties — 50 schools earned rewards. Thirty-three schools were classified as maintain ing. Twelve schools fell into the lowest category and will get state assistance money and have to write improvement plans, and about half of those are subject to a state audit because of poor performance.

        “That just points out that schools in Northern Kentucky are doing the right things, overall,” said Lisa Gross, a spokeswoman for the Kentucky Department of Education. “There are a lot of really dedicated adminis trators in Northern Kentucky and that filters down to the teachers.”

AT A GLANCE

Kentucky public schools are graded through the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System, or CATS, first used in 1999.     School scores include a combination of a statewide test and other indicators of success, such as dropout, attendance and retention rates. In future years, the scores will also include a national test.     It replaces the Kentucky Instructional Results Information System, or KIRIS, which was created under the Kentucky Education Reform Act. The General Assembly ordered a redesign of the state's assessment methods in 1998 to improve the validity and reliability of the test, reduce testing time and make the system easier to understand. SCORES

        From 1999 to 2000, scores went up at about two-thirds of Northern Kentucky's schools. And Region 4, a 13-county district that stretches from Northern Kentucky to Spencer County, claimed some of the highest scores in the state.

        In Northern Kentucky, Highlands High School and Johnson Elementary in Fort Thomas had the second and third highest scores in the state, while Covington's Holmes Junior High School and First District and Glenn O. Swing elementary schools ranked in the bottom 10 scores.

        Scores range from zero to 140. The state wants every school to reach 100 — the state's measure of “proficiency” — by 2014.

        On average, scores for all of Kentucky's elementary, middle and high schools went up this year from 1999. High schools scored the highest with an average of 64.1, followed by elementary schools at 62.1 and middle schools at 55.1.

        Region 4, which includes Northern Kentucky schools and schools in seven other counties, posted an average of 67.3 for high schools; 64.4 for elementary schools and 57.8 for middle schools. Statewide, about half of Kentucky's 1,200 public schools will get rewards, while 149 are eligible for assistance and 421 were designated as maintaining.

        While the amount of financial award is not yet decided, the schools will split around $25 million in rewards. Schools in the assistance category will share about $2 million. School councils decide how the money is spent.

        While CATS includes several factors such as retention rates, the statewide assessment test carries the most weight.

        In April, nearly 317,000 Kentucky students — grades 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11 and 12 — took the state test that covers reading, math, writing, science, social studies, arts, humanities and practical living/vocational studies.

        Across the state, students did best in reading and math. As in past years, the poorest scores were in arts and humanities and practical living/vocational studies. But scores went up in every sub ject for every grade level except for middle school scores for practical living and high school scores for writing.

        Whether schools get assistance or rewards is based on their progress, not their score. So even high-scoring schools have to make improvement from year to year to get rewards.

        “The important thing to remember is that not every school started at the same point,” said Gene Wilhoit, Kentucky's incoming education commissioner. “A score-to-score comparison is too simplistic. CATS is designed to show continuous improvement.”

        Schools are generally judged against their own past performance. Scores on the new CATS, however, can't be compared with previous years' scores because it was a different test, state officials say.

        So for the current year, to help transition to the new system, the state set a goal for each school based on 1997 and 1998 scores. How close schools got to that goal determined whether they will get rewards or assistance.

        John Williamson, Fort Thomas' curriculum and instruction director, said his district designs its courses around the state curriculum that students are expected to know on the test.

        “You can't just say the scores are out, let's keep doing what we're doing,” he said. “Even though (the scores) are so good, teachers have been asking what can we do to make them better.”

        From 1999 to 2000, Williamstown Elementary in Grant County made one of the largest gains in the region, jumping by more than 10 points from 1999 to 2000.

        Last year, the school started letting its fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders switch classes so teachers could focus on certain subjects instead of teaching everything, a move which Principal David Poer credits for much of the school's success.

        “Teachers made a special effort to make sure they were covering the curriculum and making sure the kids were well-versed in each of the different areas,” he said.

        Schools say the scores are a helpful tool in identifying students' strengths and weaknesses. Most break down scores by subject, grade and individual students to see where teachers need to beef up instruction.

        For example, when Twenhofel Middle School in Kenton County saw a weakness in its students' writing skills, the school started a new writing class for incoming students. The school also emphasizes reading and writing in every subject, said Principal Ron Schneider.

        “It helps you pinpoint problems and develop new programs, not just for the next year but for down the pike,” he said.

       

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