11 Mar 2005
DISD Interim Superintendent Highlights The Positives, Disappointed In Lack Of Improvement
DALLAS—With the release of preliminary TAKS third-grade and fifth-grade reading scores Friday, Dallas Independent School District Interim Superintendent Larry Groppel said district third-graders saw a 0.4 percent improvement over last year's results, while district fifth-graders saw a 2.3 percent drop in performance in the midst of earlier testing dates for fifth-graders and rising academic performance standards.
"There is good news in these figures as there are several schools where our students exceeded state averages in both grades. We also saw almost a quarter of our third-grade students receiving 'commended performance,'" Groppel said.
"We certainly are disappointed with the performance at many of our campuses. We must do better. While some schools were well above the state average in third and fifth-grades, others lagged behind. We must take a closer look at instructional delivery in many classrooms around the district. We cannot tolerate any excuses for those not doing well on the exam," he said.
Eight DISD schools exceeded the state average in both grades, while third-graders in 12 schools exceeded the state average in third, but did not in fifth. In seven schools, fifth-graders exceeded the state average, but did not in third grade.
Overall, the district was 12.1 percentage points below the state average in third-grade schools (76.9 percent), and 19.1 percentage points behind the state average in fifth-grade reading results (55.1).
English TAKS Commended Performance—Third and Fifth Grade
Of the 10,768 third-graders tested in reading on Feb. 23, a total of 22.1 percent passed with "commended performance." The state average for "commended performance" for third-graders in 2005 was 37 percent.
Of the 10,270 fifth-graders tested, 9.4 percent passed with "commended performance." The state average for "commended performance" for fifth-graders was 23 percent.
Statewide, 37 percent of the third-grade students reached this high performance level. Students who performed at this level missed only a few questions on the 36-item test. The passing requirement to reach the "commended performance" level has been unchanged since 2003. That year, the first year the TAKS was given, only 26 percent of the students reached this high category of performance.
Spanish Version Tested and Passing
A total of 597 third-graders were tested on the Spanish version of the TAKS 2004-05 test on Feb. 23. Of the 597 tested, a total of 10.7 percent passed with "commended performance." The district noted a 2.2 percent drop in performance on the Spanish version of the test between 2004 and 2005.
A total of 13 fifth-graders were tested with 53.8 percent of them passing. Of the 13 tested, 15.4 percent passed with "commended performance."
Schools That Scored Above State Average
There were eight schools in the district with passing percentages that exceeded the state average in both grades: Casa View third-graders at 89.1 percent; fifth-graders, 80 percent;
George Bannerman Dealey third-graders 100 percent, fifth-graders 86.8 percent; N. W. Harllee third-graders 89.7 percent, fifth-graders 77.3 percent; Stonewall Jackson third-graders 98.7 percent, fifth-graders 87.3 percent; Arthur Kramer third-graders 90.9 percent, fifth-graders 78.4 percent; Ben Milam third-graders 90.9 percent, fifth-graders 76.7 percent; Harry Stone Montessori third-graders 93.5 percent, fifth-graders 80 percent; and Nathan Adams third-graders 90.4 percent, fifth-graders 84.7 percent.
There were 12 schools where third-grade students exceeded the state passing average: James B. Bonham third-graders, 92.3 percent; Everette Lee DeGolyer third-graders 93.5 percent; Julia C. Frazier third-graders 97.0 percent; Edwin J. Kiest third-graders 90.3 percent; Lakewood third-graders 94.6 percent; William Lipscomb third-graders 92.4 percent; William Brown Miller third-graders 100 percent; Mount Auburn third-graders 94.3 percent; Alex Sanger third-graders 97.7 percent; Phillis Wheatley third-graders 100 percent; Sudie L. Williams, third-graders 90.2 percent; Jose Navarro third-graders 89.3 percent.
There were seven schools where fifth-grade students exceeded the state passing average: Arlington Park fifth-graders 83.3 percent; Billy E. Dade fifth-graders 95.5 percent; B.F. Darrell fifth-graders with 82.8 percent; K.B. Polk fifth-graders 75.3 percent; Reinhardt fifth-graders 75.0 percent; William B. Travis Magnet fifth-graders 98.4 percent; and Daniel "Chappie" James fifth-graders 83.3 percent.
Those Not Tested On First Round
A total of 69 students were not at school the day of testing; 32 third-graders and 37 fifth-graders.
The Student Success Initiative
The State Board of Education eased the passing standard the first two years of the TAKS to assist students in adjusting to the more rigorous test, which first was administered in Texas in 2003, and replaced the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills or TAAS. The eased requirements have been removed and the bar has been raised each year.
Additionally, fifth-graders this year are required to pass the math and reading sections of the TAKS for promotion. In three years, eighth-graders will be required to pass the exam.
For those students who failed to pass the test on the first attempt, the tests will be administered again on April 20 and June 29, 2005.