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Hillsborough FCAT scores higher than state average
By LOGAN D. MABE, Times Staff Writer TAMPA -- When people call the Hillsborough school superintendent's office and are put on hold, they are treated to a recorded tape boasting about the county's stellar student performance. "Our students exceeded the state average in all subjects at every level in the FCAT," the superintendent says proudly. That tape should be good for another year. Hillsborough students beat the state averages on the annual reading and math tests in grades four through 10, according to results released Wednesday by the state Department of Education.
Third graders scored above the state average in math, and were at the state average in reading. The numbers came spilling out of a Federal Express overnight pouch at district headquarters in Tampa, though some educators were able to find them on the DOE's Web site before it became inaccessible because of heavy internet traffic. "I'd say we're about the same in reading and a little bit better in mathematics (compared with last year)," said John Hildebrand, the district's director of school assessment, accountability and evaluation. "We also looked at the writing scores and for the first time compared ourselves to the 11 largest counties," he said. "We were No. 1 this year." In previous years, scores from the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test were reliable predictors of what letter grade each school would receive from the state. That isn't true this year because of changes the state is making in how it develops the grades. What changed? "Everything," Hildebrand said. School grades should be out by June 20. Bevis Elementary in Lithia set the curve for fourth-grade scores, topping all county schools in both reading and math after finishing very high last year. "I'll tell you how we do it," said Bevis principal Beverly Carbaugh . "We have a goal and we have a mission. We stay focused. Everybody knows what we want and that it's to be the best." At the middle school level, Wilson Middle dropped slightly from its scores of a year ago, but finished high enough to be Hillsborough's top school in eighth grade reading and math. "I looked at the seventh-grade scores from last year and I expected them to go up because I expect our children to grow academically," said Wilson principal Jean Hamilton. Hillsborough's writing scores were strong across the board, but especially so at the elementary school level. Claywell Elementary in Northdale had the highest average score with a 4.3 on a scale of 6 among its fourth-graders. Teacher Vickie Anderson, who drilled her fourth-graders on FCAT skills every day of the school year, wasn't surprised. "Our writing score, we're real pleased with," Anderson said of the 4.3 score. "Oh yeah, that's a feel-good score right now." The numbers did reveal one rough patch. Students in the 10th grade must pass FCAT reading and math if they are to graduate. In Hillsborough, only 62 percent passed the reading portion while 79 percent passed the math. Both numbers were better than the state averages, but it means nearly 40 percent of 10th graders will need to retake and pass the reading section to get a cap and gown in two years. The release of the scores created much buzz in classrooms, hallways, administrative offices and on phone lines. Because the scores will be used to help determine a school's grade, educators tend to be nervous. "For a couple of weeks here, it's very difficult for principals and staff if the grades are low," Hildebrand said. "You're always under the gun to improve, especially if you're low . . . Would you send your child to a school that got a D?" -- Logan D. Mabe can be reached at 269-5304 or at mabe@sptimes.com
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