New data should help Cape solve problems
As Cape Henlopen school board member Spencer Brittingham put it, Cape Henlopen students have scored a victory on the latest round of state tests.
District officials and board members were concerned when the state’s new testing system was unveiled, amid announcements state officials were raising expectations and the test would be harder. Cape officials worried the hard work of students and teachers to meet tougher standards might not be reflected in the new scores.
But overall Cape students have fared well, and the new test, which students will take several times during the school year, will allow district officials to zero-in on students who are not progressing so their problems can be identified and addressed.
Most district students are meeting state standards in both reading and math. At Rehoboth Elementary, an amazing 92 percent of fifth-graders are meeting the new, tougher math standards.
That’s the good news.
The bad news is that by 10th grade, about 4 of 10 students still did not meet state standards in reading, and it math it was slightly worse. The achievement gap, which tracks the differences in average scores among groups of students, clearly indicates that Cape still has work to do to ensure all Cape Region students graduate and that they graduate ready for college or for work.
With the high school now complete, now is the time for the board and its new administration to use data generated by the new tests to figure out why certain students and certain schools lag behind the rest of the district. Research shows it's not enough to simply put more resources into schools that are not successful. Highly effective teachers make the critical difference in whether students learn. Cape must identify those teachers and ensure each school has a core of successful teachers ready to use the data the tests are generating to improve learning.
Nationally, educators have adopted a model of decision-making based on the data produced by the new state tests. For Cape to emerge as a leader statewide and nationwide, it's critical that the new administration solve the achievement gap so all students succeed in learning and finish high school ready for college or ready for work.
