Local students score better on end tests

Principals believe that collaboration among staff members, setting goals based on data analysis and community support helped students in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools gain in every subject area and every grade level during end-of-grade and end-of-course tests in 2009-10.

Overall, white, black and Hispanic students improved, and the gaps in proficiency between black and white students and between Hispanic and white students shrank, test results show.

According to preliminary test results released by the school system yesterday, 82.4 percent of students in third through eighth grade passed state math tests, up from 79.1 percent in 2009-10. In reading, 69.1 percent passed their tests, up from 65.6 percent.

The results are so good that, once the state releases official results, it's possible that the school system will have no schools categorized as low-performing, Superintendent Don Martin said. Last year, the system had nine low-performing schools.

"That's a huge improvement," Martin said. "Obviously, students were working hard."

At North Hills Elementary School-- where the number of students proficient in reading rose 11.4 percentage points and in math rose 13.9 percentage points -- principal Karen Morning-Cain said she thinks that, working together as a team, staff members analyzed the data from previous years and set goals for this year.

"It was very helpful," she said. "Specific interventions for specific students was key."

Community support made a big difference as well, she said. Volunteers from Wake Forest University, the Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce and several churches came in and tutored students.

"We had all these people on board," she said.

Students also played their part by working hard and setting goals, she said.

At Kimberley Park Elementary School, students were more proficient in reading by 5.3 percentage points and by 14.6 percentage points in math. Principal Amber Baker made some of the same points about the importance of collaboration and data analysis. She attributed the particularly strong gains in math to having a math coach at the school.

"We had a very strong math instructional coach that really understood what was necessary for the kids to be successful," Baker said.

For the coming year, she said, the school plans to start putting an extra focus on reading.

Systemwide, the gap between white and black students in reading -- though still substantial -- shrank by 4.2 percentage points. In math, the gap shrank by 2.9 percentage points. For Hispanics, who already showed a smaller achievement gap with white students than blacks, the margin in reading shrank by 1.8 percentage points and in math by 0.4 percentage points.

In high schools, tests are given at the end of eight courses -- Algebra I and II, biology, civics, English I, geometry, physical science and U.S. history. Students gained in each of the eight end-of-course tests even before retests, which were given for the first time this year to students who did not pass the test the first time. Retests added to the gains.

"Parents should see this as a clear sign we are moving in the right direction," Martin said. "We still have work to do, but our teachers and staff should be very proud of the progress we made last year."

Martin said that administrators spent more time in classrooms this past year, and that the central office provided additional support for low-performing schools, both of which were factors in the improvement.

"I think there was a lot better focus, and there were more tools to help us do that," he said.

Donny Lambeth, the chairman of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school board, said he thinks that leadership within the schools played an important role in the improvement.

"Rather than look for faults and why the data is wrong, the strong leaders have taken the challenge to take the steps to improve the results," Lambeth said.

Board member Marilyn Parker said she was pleased with the results.

"Schools have worked really hard," she said. "Parents and students have worked hard."

Although retest scores were used for the first time in high schools this year, retests in the elementary and middle schools began in 2008-09. So those scores compare retest totals to retest totals. Overall, 39 of 56 elementary and middle schools made gains in reading, math and science. Science is tested only in grades five and eight.

Ten more elementary and middle schools made gains in two of three subjects. Three new schools -- Caleb's Creek and Kimmel Farm elementary schools and Flat Rock Middle School-- took the tests for the first time.

Among the schools with double-digit increases in at least one area were Middle Fork Elementary (11.3 percent increase in reading and 18.4 percent increase in math, Cook (12.3 percent in math), Petree Elementary (19.2 percent increase in math) and Philo Middle (15 percent increase in math.)

Twelve of 17 high schools showed increases in the percentage of students passing end-of-course tests in before retests were counted. When retests were included, all 17 high schools showed gains.

Jacket Academy, which is a school-within-a-school at Carver, increased 32.4 percent before retesting and 43.8 points after retesting, and Parkland High increased 9.5 percent before retesting and 16.8 points after retesting. Carver, North Forsyth, Winston-Salem Preparatory Academy and the School of Biotechnology at Atkins High School also made double-digit gains after retesting.

The school system made the scores available in advance of the release next week of North Carolina's accountability program, the ABCs of Public Education. The N.C. Department of Public Instruction uses test scores to calculate composite proficiencies to measure how much students progressed from one year to the next.

kunderwood@wsjournal.com


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