Results from state-mandated testing for the 2012-2013 school year were presented to the Board of Education on Wednesday, and the results show children in the Asbury Park School District are performing below average across the board.
William J. Shannon, director of special services for the district, presented the scores, which he says are of “concern” since they are going down.
Fourth and eighth graders throughout the state are required to take the annual New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge [NJASK] test, a measurement of their proficiency in language arts, math and science.
The number of Asbury students in the fourth grade scoring at a proficient level are 15 percentage points lower than their counterparts in similar school districts in language arts, 27.6 points lower in math, and 23.1 points lower in science. As compared to statewide scores, the number scoring at a proficient level are 42 points lower in language arts, 47.3 in math and 38.3 in science.
Only 17 percent of fourth graders scored proficient in language arts, “an extremely low percentage” according to Shannon.
The number of eighth graders who achieved a proficient score are 23.3 percent points lower than their counterparts in similar districts in language arts, 28.1 points lower in math and 20.4 lower in science. Asbury eighth graders who scored at a proficient level were 44.2 percent points less than the state average in language arts, 52.2 less in math and 46.3 less in science.
Eleventh graders take the High School Proficiency Assessment [HSPA], a measurement of their proficiency in language arts and math.
The district’s HSPA scores are also lower than comparison schools and statewide numbers. Eleventh graders are 33.2 percentage points behind the comparison districts and 50.5 percentage points behind statewide averages in language arts; 26.4 points behind their comparable districts and 50.2 points behind statewide averages in math.
In terms of district progress, all of the scores fell below last year’s numbers with the exception of HSPA math scores, which increased 9.1 percentage points from 20.4 percent proficient to 29.5.
The district is trying to bring professional development and programs into the district to improve test scores, Shannon said.
“It’s a message that we need to make some changes,” he said. “Things need to improve.”
The tests show what percentage of student score in the proficient range for each subject, and are presented in comparison with proficiency percentages of District Factor Groups [DFG] — school districts that are comparable to Asbury Park in terms of their socioeconomic status — as well as statewide percentages. The overall scores are also broken down into subcategories of general education, special education students and limited English proficient students.
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