30 May 2003
Superintendent Says District Continues To Make Efforts To Raise Scores
DALLAS—Dallas Independent School District Superintendent Mike Moses on Friday said that preliminary TAKS test results of more than 85,000 students tested in grades 3-11, when compared to TAAS equivalencies, show further gains in the district's student achievement, but he also said the scores themselves leave concerns in all academic areas that must be addressed.
"The scores themselves are nothing to cheer about, but the trend lines show continued improvement in the Dallas Independent School District," Moses said. "We have considerable work to do in order to do better, and I do not think anyone will be content with these numbers. To me, these scores say we need to continue our efforts to align our curriculum with what is expected from the state and then ensure it is being taught in our classrooms. We know we can do better. We must do better."
The superintendent said that the data show district students continue to improve academically, that the district exceeded predictions based on last year's field tests, and that the number of third graders passing the required test has improved significantly. He also noted that district students apparently are the weakest at higher order thinking skills. He also said that next year's scores, when used by the Texas Education Agency to rate schools, will only consider "continuously enrolled" students and not include those who move in and out of a district like the 2003 numbers do.
The highest passing percentage of any grade was third grade reading (88.6 percent) with the next highest passing percentage being third grade math (80.7 percent). The lowest percentage by grade was from 45.6 percent of the district's 10,600 ninth graders who successfully passed their math tests.
Overall, 73.2 percent of DISD's 85,472 students tested passed the reading portion, while 65.3 percent passed in math, and 73.3 percent passed their writing tests in grades four, seven and eight.
The superintendent said the district has seen mixed results from the tests.
"We see some areas where we certainly are pleased and areas where there is much more work to do and improve. The test has been a good experience for us in our quest to improve student learning. The scores from this year's tests identify areas where we need to give extra attention," Moses said.
"There is some comfort in knowing that if the state were still using the TAAS as a measure of student achievement, our students would have done very well," Moses said. "But we understand there was a need for a newer, tougher test to continue to challenge our students and measure an expanded level of success. We know we're making progress, now we have a new benchmark to follow, and we can set goals to continue to do better."
For complete information regarding DISD TAKS scores, go to the district's homepage and click 2003 TAKS Results under Latest News. The DISD's Web address is www.dallasisd.org.