Test scores up: District prepares for new state test

By Mary Owen

In the latest round of OAKS testing, North Santiam School District students scored above the state average, receiving high marks for reading, mathematics and science.

“We believe the report cards show the results of the good work of families, staff and students but there is much to work on as we moved forward,” said Andy Gardner, NSSD superintendent, of state report cards given on Oct. 9.

For more than a decade, Oregon schools have measured students’ progress toward state standards with the OAKS (Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills) tests. The test is taken in the spring and results are released in the fall. All results are for last year’s grade levels.

This year, NSSD scores in reading for grades 3-8 were all above the state average with third graders showing the highest jump at 8 percent.

Scores in math for the same grades were also above the state average with fifth graders scores higher by 13 percent. Science scores for grades 5-12 rated 8 percent in grades 5-8 and 7 percent in grades 9-12 above the state average.

Gardner attributes the high scores to several important factors.

“First, we have exceptional rates of attendance,” he said.

“Students are able to benefit from instruction. Second, we have great teachers who have blossomed in the shared learning model of PLC’s, and we have worked diligently to improve our understanding of the standards and how best to teach them.”

The OAKS tests have been the way that Oregon has measured its students’ progress toward the Oregon State Standards for over a decade, Gardner said.

“In the last couple of years, there has been a fundamental shift in how we look at these scores. While there is still a standard for each grade, a score that is defined as meeting the standard at any given grade, there is more emphasis now on how much gain a student makes in math and reading from one grade to the next,” Gardner said.

According to Gardner, this year-to-year movement now counts three times as much as the number of students who “meet” or “exceed” a grade benchmark in a given year. The 2013-14 report cards are the last set of report cards that will use the OAKS test in reading and math.

“This school year, students will take the new Smarter Balanced Tests that measure students against the new Common Core Standards,” he added.

Gardner said the district has been working for three years to prepare for Common Core, standards that focus on reading and mathematics to purposely make sure public school students are ready to compete with other nations’ workforces in the coming century.

To improve test scores even more, Gardner said the district plans to include full-day kindergarten beginning in the fall of 2015.

“The district is also partnering with other districts and local pre-schools in a Pre-School Education Grant designed to increase kindergarten readiness among local preschoolers,” Gardner added. “These programs should continue to show improvements in our third-grade literacy scores, which are a critical benchmark for later school success.”

At the middle- and high-school levels, NSSD will also continue to focus on post-high-school planning and building clear pathways toward work, a two-year program or certificate, or four-year college degree, Gardner said.