Hawai'i student test scores recede on state assessment
| • | Chart: Hawai'i State Assessment |
| View results from the Hawai'i Content and Performance Standards, and the Stanford Achievement Test. Adobe Acrobat required. | |
| Hawai'i Content and Performance Standards test results: | |
| • | Math by schools |
| • | Reading by schools |
| • | State summary |
| Stanford Achievement Test results: | |
| • | School-by-school results |
| • | State summary |
By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Education Writer
Hawai'i third-graders have made small gains in math, but students at other grade levels have fallen further below the state's expectations for learning.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
Results of the Hawai'i State Assessment, a series of tests taken in the spring, found that public-school students continue to score well below state math and reading standards, and that fifth-, eighth- and 10th-grade students did worse this year than in 2002, the first year the tougher state tests were given.
Ali'iolani Elementary School fifth-graders tackle a reading assignment. About 40 percent of the fifth-graders in public schools meet state proficiency levels in reading.
Hawai'i students continue to do better on the Stanford Achievement Test, a national measurement, with students close to or above the national average in math and reading, according to scores released yesterday by the state Department of Education.
But educators were disappointed with the results on the state tests, known as the Hawaii Content and Performance Standards. Although the declines were not dramatic over the year before, educators believe it is significant that scores slipped, given the emphasis placed on the tests.
"We must intensify our efforts and reaffirm our commitment to improve academic achievement in our public schools," said Pat Hamamoto, state schools superintendent.
The new round of test scores could fuel demands for education reform and give more ammunition to those who want to radically reshape public schools. The results also could renew questions about whether state standards are too high and doom schools to failure, because they are used to calculate whether schools are meeting targets in the federal No Child Left Behind law.
Schools must show gradual progress so that all students are proficient in reading and math by 2014. The state DOE found last month that 180 of 280 Hawai'i public schools, or 64 percent, failed to meet the academic benchmarks the state agreed to under the law.
Schools considered to be in the most dire situation under the law — those that have failed to achieve adequate progress over several years — will receive special help from the DOE and outside experts.
Waipahu Intermediate School, for instance, is restructuring in an attempt to gain ground. State test scores at the school declined this year, with just 9.7 percent of eighth-graders at or above the state standard in math and 27 percent proficient in reading, compared with 14.9 percent and 31.2 percent, respectively, last year.
"We didn't expect to go up, but we could be doing better,'' said Gary Fujii, the school's vice principal. "It's really a reflection on us and where we need to go."
The state assessment tests show that third-graders statewide scored slightly better on math tests than in 2002, though only 24.1 percent met or exceeded the state proficiency standard. In reading, 41.9 percent met or exceeded the state proficiency.
But only 15.7 percent of eighth-graders met or exceeded the state standard in math and 37.2 percent hit the mark in reading. And only 15.1 percent of 10th-graders met or exceeded the state standard in math, 34.7 percent in reading.
On the SAT, however, Hawai'i students were closer to the national norm in math, and about equal or better than the national norm in reading. The state tests involve more writing than the SAT, which is multiple choice, and students often have to explain how they reached an answer.
With the back-to-back release of test results and the snapshot of how schools are dealing with No Child Left Behind, parents have a lot to digest.
Performance on standardized tests is important for administrators and teachers to measure how students are doing, educators say, but it is not the only factor that determines student achievement or school quality.
Parents should closely follow how their children are handling daily or weekly assignments and how teachers set expectations for each subject.
"There are other things that are happening in the schools that are indicators of success,'' said Lance Nishihara, a counselor and test coordinator at Momilani Elementary School in Pearl City, where students have performed well on the state tests.
Half of third-graders at the school are proficient in math and most are proficient in reading, although scores dipped a little this year. Fifth-graders also met the state standard in math and reading, and their test scores improved over the previous year.
"We use the test scores as a gauge and a tool to see where students are at," Nishihara said.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
Maria Kostylo, of Hawai'i Kai, a nurse with children in fifth and eighth grades, said she likes that the state tests emphasize writing but hopes that teachers are doing more than getting students ready for exams.
Ali'iolani fifth-grader Guile Chong listens as teacher Annie Yokoyama discusses a reading assignment with the class.
"The tests should be a reflection of what they're learning, not how well they are practicing to take the tests," Kostylo said.
Under No Child Left Behind, a string of poor performances has consequences for schools.
Parents have the option of taking their children out of schools with persistently low test scores and transferring to better schools, and schools that fail to catch up could be forced to overhaul under strict oversight and possibly new staff.
Ruth Silberstein, the principal at Palolo Elementary School, where a large number of students are from low-income families, said the school is making small strides, but not enough to keep pace with escalating standards.
"We're making progress, slowly, but we're proud of it because of the things that we're doing,'' she said.
"We can do much better, but we just need more time and more resources."
Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8084.
