Some FCAT truths reveal themselves

Chocachatti Elementary and Powell Middle can be proud. Fourth-graders write well. Ninth-graders are struggling. And schools brace for grades.

By ROBERT KING, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 16, 2002

Say this much for the 2002 FCAT: It doesn't skimp on the numbers.

Schools across Florida were buried Wednesday in an avalanche of FCAT scores that may take weeks to dig out from. Still, a few things were already clear Wednesday.

Reading is still Hernando County's best subject. Writing remains a struggle. And the scores in math leave something to be desired.

The three-digit FCAT scores tell us something about how children performed, but not much. On a grading scale from 100 to 500, your school probably falls somewhere in the middle, in the 300 range. But those three-digit scores can tell us a lot more Want to know how your school's academic performance has grown over a year? Find your school's scores Statewide FCAT: Many scores look better Pinellas: Schools weigh FCAT scores with caution Hillsborough: Scores higher than state average Citrus: Big picture appears brighter Hernando: Some truths reveal themselves Pasco: News so far: 'respectable scores'

Elementary school students are competing well with the rest of Florida. High school students, while not setting the world on fire, are doing okay. And middle schools, by and large, are having a tough go of it.

And unlike years past, when test scores were good predictors of how schools would fare on the state's A to F grading system, this year's scores shed little light simply because the grading system has grown so complicated. It will be June, when the state's report cards are released, before schools know how they really did.

School district officials said Wednesday that they hadn't had time to digest the results.

As in years past, there were highs and lows.

Chocachatti Elementary turned in the most dominating performance in the county. Its students posted the county's highest scores in every category. It was one of three elementary schools -- along with Brooksville and Suncoast -- that bested the state at every grade level and in every subject.

Powell Middle School, which relinquished its claim to middle school bragging rights in recent years, seemed to reclaim that glory this year, tying or edging Fox Chapel in all but one of seven categories.

The county's fourth-graders posted one of the highest writing scores in the state. Among their peers in the state's 67 other counties, Hernando County's score was the third highest in the state.

Then there was the other end of the spectrum.

Eastside Elementary's fourth-graders had the lowest scores in the county in all three tested subjects -- reading, math and writing. And, in each case, the school's fourth-graders fell below the state average.

As a class, Hernando High's ninth-graders finished below the state average in both subjects they were tested in -- reading and math.

As a whole, the county's middle schools turned in an abysmal performance.

All four middle schools finished below the state average in writing. And all four schools had sixth grade classes that finished below the state average in math. Only one school, Powell, beat the state average in math at the seventh grade level.

Then there were those results that fit into the "it-depends-on-how-you-look-at-it" category.

All Florida students must pass the 10th grade FCAT exams in reading and math in order to graduate. Students who fail either portion of the test in the 10th grade can retake it several times before graduation.

On the plus side, Hernando County's 10th-graders had a higher passing rate than the rest of the state, with 76 percent passing the math exam and 65 percent passing the reading exam.

But that means that fully one-fourth of high school sophomores failed the math test and one-third failed the reading exam. If they can't get a better score over the next two years, they won't graduate on time.

Students in grades 3-10 were tested in reading and math. A few select grades -- four, eight and 10 -- were also tested in writing. The exams were given in February and March.

Changes to the school grading system this year mean that, for the first time, schools will be judged by how much their students improve from one year to the next. Schools will also be judged by how far their lowest performers improved.

That information still isn't available from the state, making early grade predictions impossible this year.

-- Robert King covers education in Hernando County and can be reached at 754-6127. Send e-mail to rking@sptimes.com.

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