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PEEKSKILL, N.Y. Peekskill City School District students in grades three through eight showed improvement on some New York State standardized tests scores in 2012, but showed declines in others, according to results released Tuesday by the state Education Department.
Students test scores fall into one of four categories. The first two indicate a student is below proficiency. A student at level three meets the proficiency standard, while a level four student exceeds it.
Peekskill students taking English language arts (ELA) tests saw 38.2 percent scored at proficiency or exceeding it, while 52.4 percent of the students who took the math state tests met proficiency or exceeded it. Last year ELA was 35.5 percent and math was 45.46 percent.
Many of the test scores fluctuated slightly from the year before, either increasing or decreasing less than five points. Some of the biggest changes were sixth-grade math, where the mean scores rose from 669 to 678, eighth-grade ELA where the mean rose from 647 to 657, and eighth-grade math, where the mean rose from 676 to 682.Statewide, test scores were on the rise, as 55.1 percent of third- through eighth-graders met or exceeded the ELA proficiency standard and 64.8 percent met or exceeded the standard in math.
"There is some positive momentum in these numbers," said Board of Regents Chancellor Merryl H. Tisch in a release. "But too many of our students, especially students of color, English language learners and special education students, are currently not on a course for college and career readiness."
According to the state, as a result of raising the bar for what it means to be proficient in ELA and math, fewer students met or exceeded the standard in 2010. In 2012, progress toward the new ELA standard varied by grade, though progress toward the math standard increased slightly.
John B. King Jr., commissioner of the State Education Department, said the tests will get even harder in 2013 when the the department implements the Regents Reform Agenda, which includes new college- and career-ready standards and a new "fair and transparent teacher and principal evaluation system."
Test results are available in a variety of formats on the state Education Department website.
Editor's note: White Plains Daily Voice reporter Brian Donnelly contributed to this story.
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