NBCPS EARNS EXEMPLARY REPORT CARD
by Jim Havelka
October 5, 2009
All but one of
North Bend Central Public Schools' elementary, junior high, and
high school grades exceeded 90 percent proficiency in Reading,
Math, Writing, and Science performance in 2008-09, according to the
annual State of the Schools Report released October 5 by the
Nebraska Department of Education. Grade 7 students fell below that
mark in math proficiency at 85.7 percent.
The annual State of the Schools Report, which includes detailed accountability information for each Nebraska school district and school building, can be viewed on the the Department's website: http://reportcard.nde.state.ne.us. This year’s fall release includes both state accountability data which is measured in Grades 3-8 and 11 and the broader federal accountability information required by the No Child Left Behind Act.
As in previous
years, North Bend Central Public Schools met all the state and
federal accountability criteria, according to Superintendent Jim
Havelka. The percentage of NBCPS students meeting or exceeding
state standards ranged from 90.9 percent to 98.1 percent in reading
and from 85.7 percent to 97.1 percent in Mathematics, Havelka said.
Science and Writing scores, which are measured in fewer grades,
exceed 90 percent for all grades. Detailed scores are provided in
the attached charts.
On the crucial
federal standard of school accountability, called Adequate Yearly
Progress or AYP, proficiency (measured somewhat differently than
state accountability) ranged from 93.2 percent to 98.3 percent in
Reading and from 89.7 percent to 94.7 percent in Math. Schools are
expected to meet 100 percent on both subjects by 2013-14. Schools
that do not meet AYP standards in the same subject area and grade
span for two consecutive years are considered “in need of
improvement” and may be subject to federal sanctions such as the
requirement to provide tutoring, Havelka said.
"Our students are
performing well in core subjects on the state and federal
accountability measures,” Havelka said. “I think this reflects
credit on the students, their teachers, and on the committed
families who provide a such a sound basis of support for our
schools.”
Havelka noted that 2008-09 is the last year for the current state reading standards and assessments. A statewide reading test, based on new standards, will be implemented in April, 2010. New math standards and a statewide test will be given to Nebraska’s students in 2011 and a new science test will begin in 2012.
Science results were reported on a statewide basis for only the second time this year. Proficiency levels for NBCPS students were 94.3% in Grade 5, 91.6% in Grade 8, and 90.8% in Grade 11. These scores compare to statewide averages of 90.9%, 89.3%, and 87.7% respectively.
Results from the
annual Statewide Writing Examination, taken in February, showed
NBCPS students significantly above the state averages. The
percentage of NBCPS students meeting or exceeding the state average
was 97.4 percent in Grade 4, 96.7 percent in Grade 8, and 100
percent in Grade 11. This compares to statewide averages of 90
percent in Grade 4, 94.6 percent in Grade 8, and 94 percent in
Grade 11.
Beyond the core
subjects, the state and federal accountability criteria also
consider such topics as graduation rate and teacher qualifications.
NBC High School had a four-year graduation rate of 100 percent in
2007-08 compared to a state rate of 89.7 percent. The statewide
high school dropout rate for 2007-08 was 1.69 percent. NBC High
School had no dropouts during that year. The 2008-09 rates for
dropouts and graduates for Nebraska schools will be calculated
later this fall.
All NBCPS teachers who are required
to do so met the federal Highly Qualified Teacher standards in
2008-09. This means that they were either fully endorsed by the
state in the core subjects they teach or had met an alternative
state standard based on experience and college preparation.
According to the
state report, about 81 percent of Nebraska’s school districts met
the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals in 2008-09. To meet AYP in
Reading, at least 81 percent of students in Grades 3-6, 81 percent
of students in Grades 7-8, and 83 percent in Grade 11 must be rated
proficient. For NBCPS, 93.2% of elementary students, 98.3 percent
of junior high students, and 97.4 percent of juniors met that
standard.
In Math, the
required AYP levels are 83 percent in Grades 3-6, 79 percent in
Grades 7-8, and 81 percent in Grade 11. For NBCPS, levels of
federally-defined proficiency were 94.7 percent in Grades 3-6, 89.7
percent in Grades 7-8, and 94.7 percent in Grade 11. Writing AYP is
met if 62 percent of Fourth Graders and 61 percent of Eighth
Graders are proficient. Locally, 97.4% of Fourth Graders and 96.7
percent of Eighth Graders met that standard.
In addition to the
state and federal accountability standards, other measures were
also reported in the State of the Schools Report. For NBCPS
students these included the standardized achievement tests which
compare local students to others across the nation and the
pre-college ACT tests. On achievement tests the national midpoint
is set statistically at the 50th percentile so half of the students
should score above and half below. The ACT is scored between zero
and 36 points.
**In reading
achievement testing, about 61 percent of NBCPS Fourth Graders,
83.3 percent of Eighth Graders, and 77.8 percent of Eleventh
Graders scored above the midpoint. The state report did not include
a direct comparison of 4th, 7th, and 11th graders, but a rough
comparison can be made with the state's figures for students in
Grades 3-5 (65.4% above the 50th percentile), Grades 7-8 (59.8%),
and Grades 10-12 (60.5%).
**In math
achievement testing, about 56.1 percent of NBCPS Fourth
Graders, 86.7 percent of Eighth Graders, and 72.2 percent of
Eleventh Graders exceeded the 50th percentile. The roughly
comparable state figures would be: Grades 3-5 (66.6% above the 50th
percentile), Grades 7-8 (60.9%), and Grades 10-12 (59.9%).
**Although not
included in the Report, NBC sophomores annually take the
pre-college PLAN Test, Havelka said. The average percentile
score of 64.8 for the 2008-09 sophomores exceeded the national
average.
**ACT scores for
the Class of 2009 were somewhat above both the state and national
averages, Havelka said. NBC Seniors had an average composite score
of 22.2 compared to 22.1 for the state average, and 21.1
nationally. About 71 percent of local Seniors took the ACT last
year compared to 72 percent of all Nebraska high school Seniors. In
states where more than 70 percent of Seniors take the ACT, Nebraska
ranks first nationally.
Along with student
performance, four demographic characteristics with a high
correlation to student achievement were reported for each district.
Havelka said. The first is poverty which was measured by
eligibility for free/reduced lunches. NBCPS had fewer students in
this category than the state average: about 28 percent locally
compared to about 38 percent statewide. The second is mobility.
Last year, about 6.7 percent of NBCPS students moved during the
school year compared to about 11.5 percent statewide. The third
characteristic is language. While 6.3 percent of students in
Nebraska are designated as English Language Learners, that is, not
proficient in English, no NBCPS students were in that category. The
fourth category is the number of students receiving Special
Education services. Fewer than 10 percent of NBCPS students
received SPED services in 2008-09 compared to about 15 percent
statewide.
In terms of teacher
quality standards, NBCPS teachers exceeded state averages in
experience and education level, but the school district was
slightly below the state average in subject area endorsement. The
average teacher experience for NBCPS teachers was 21.8 years
compared to 15.2 years statewide. Almost 62 percent of NBCPS
teachers had a master’s degree or high qualification in 2008-09
compared to about 42 percent of teachers across the state. State
regulations require that 80 percent of junior-senior high school
instructional units be taught by teachers who are fully endorsed in
the subject area and NBC High School had a 2008-09 endorsement rate
of 93.6 percent.
Curriculum and
academic requirements were also compared in the Report. NBC High
School requires four years of English for graduation and three
years of math. Statewide, about 92 percent of high schools require
four years of English and about 77 percent require three years of
math.
Financially, the
school district received about 80 percent of its revenue locally in
2007-08, the most recent data available, compared to an average
local support across the state of 52 percent. NBCPS received about
13 percent of its funding from state sources compared to a
statewide average of 38 percent. The school district spent about 65
percent of its budget on instruction in that year compared to a
statewide average of 60 percent.
The NBCPS Board of
Education is scheduled to discuss the State of the Schools Report
at its October 12 Board meeting.
