Brandon Twp.- Students here and across the state were tested this week with M-STEP.
The M-STEP replaces MEAP, the previous Michigan standardized test, and while teachers and students weren’t sure what to expect and results won’t be known for an undetermined amount of time, district administrators are celebrating district success on another exam.
During the April 20 board meeting, Superintendent Matt Outlaw presented results from the NWEA exam, which district students began taking last spring. The test is administered twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring to all third through tenth grade students in the areas of reading, math, and language arts.
At nearly every level, students made gains this spring, in some cases, very large gains, over last fall.
‘We’re very proud of what the elementary schools have accomplished,? said School Board President Kevin McClellan. ‘That is where our focus has been and they have really risen to the challenge.?
The test measures average percentile ranks compared to millions of students that took the test nationwide, Outlaw said. Students ranked in the 80th percentile, for example, are performing at a rate higher than 79 percent of other test-takers.
The district as a whole improved from 40.4 percent in math last fall to 45.3 percent in math this spring, a 4.9 percent increase. In reading, there was a district increase of 1.4 percent, from 45.3 percent last fall to 46.7 percent this spring.
The most startling improvement came in math for Oakwood Elementary students? last fall, the average was 37 percent, while this spring, students averaged 52 percent, a 15 percent increase. Harvey Swanson and Brandon Fletcher Intermediate also had strong showings, with a 7.4 percent increase in math at HS from 39.3 percent to 46.7 percent, and at BFIS, a 6.5 percent increase, with students raising their average from 36.2 percent to 42.7 percent.
In reading, Oakwood, Harvey Swanson, and BFIS all had increases as well, 5.6, 3.8, and 2.6 percent respectively, all falling in a range of about 45 to 46 percent average.
Outlaw said principals at the schools are attributing the increases to interventions for all students, not just those who are struggling, but those who may be ‘on the bubble? or just below or just above proficient on the state exam.
‘Support resources that were formerly exclusively used for bottom students are being allocated for students in the middle as well? parapros are providing more assistance to those students,? Outlaw said. ‘The other thing that has shone through is Bridges, our new math curriculum. Also, the hard work and dedication by our teachers? they are working so hard for these kids and you can’t have this kind of improvement without their efforts.?
Outlaw called the NWEA a great formative assessment in which educators can track individual student growth and modify instruction based on the results, analyzing patterns and gaps in student learning. Parents receive reports on their student’s personal growth as well.
The district saw slight decreases at the middle and high school level on the test, about a half percent in math? from 46 to 45.5 percent at the high school and from 41.4 to 41 percent at the middle school and a full 2 percent decrease at the high school in reading, from 49.4 percent to 47.4 percent, and from 47.6 percent to 46.8 percent at the middle school, a .8 percent decrease in reading.
‘We are going to have to revisit those test scores at the middle school and high school,? Outlaw said. ‘We had reports of kids clicking through and not taking the test? test apathy. I’m not sure how prevalent that was, but I will talk to the principal and we’ll get the message across this is important and something we use to improve the schools.?