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January 9, 1998
About 9 in 10 Students Passing
New,
More Rigorous Competency Test
Percent
Passing at End of Grade 10 by LEA | Percent
Passing at End of Grade 11 by LEA
State officials say they're pleased
that despite the move to more rigorous North Carolina Competency Tests,
about 9 in 10 students by grade 11 are meeting this standard as required
for high school graduation.
State Superintendent Mike Ward said,
"Even though we've raised the bar, schools and students are meeting
this more rigorous challenge for the most part. That's really excellent
news. The fact that higher percentages of students are passing a harder
test is due in some part to a renewed emphasis on the basics, reading and
mathematics."
Mildred Bazemore, testing chief in the NC
Department of Public Instruction's Accountability Services Division,
reported that the latest results, for the 1996-97 school year, show 90.3
percent of 11th-grade students met the NC competency standard in reading
and mathematics, meaning they reached achievement levels III or IV (on a
I-IV scale) on both the reading and mathematics tests. The previous year,
that figure was 82 percent. The latest report also shows 84.3 percent of
10th-graders passing the tests. A comparison to the previous year's
results in that category would not be appropriate, according to testing
officials, because the data were not collected in a comparable manner.
Students in North Carolina have to pass
the tests to receive their diploma, but they have several chances to take
the test each year starting in eighth grade.
Bazemore explained that the State Board
of Education in 1995 boosted this standard for high school graduation
because of concerns that students were graduating from high school without
the fundamental reading and mathematics skills they needed to be
successful. The old competency test standard was instituted with the class
of 1981 and required a lower level of achievement. The new standard
applies beginning with the Class of 1998, last year's juniors in these
latest results.
Despite the good news of 9 in 10 students
passing the test, Bazemore noted there are still some disparities in
performance among school districts and ethnic groups.
Dr. Ward also said he'd like to see a
higher number of students passing the tests at lower grade levels.
"We'd like to see more students reach that bar by the end of eighth
grade," he said. "As we start to see more payoff with The ABCs
of Public Education, and its emphasis on the basics of reading and
mathematics, I think we'll start to see more of that happening."
For more information, contact Mildred
Bazemore at DPI, 919/807-3774, or local school districts.
Percent Passing
at End of Grade 10 by LEA | Percent
Passing at End of Grade 11 by LEA
|
