State Milestone Assessment results for 2015-16 were recently released by the Georgia Department of Education, and Coweta students continue to show strong results compared to state-wide performance averages.
Overall, Coweta County School System students outperformed their peers statewide on the annual grade and subject exams.
The Georgia Milestones Assessment System is the state’s comprehensive testing program for students, covering a number of subject exams in grades 3 through 12. Student performance on the exams is reported in one of four categories – Beginning Learner, Developing Learner, Proficient Learner, and Distinguished Learner. These levels are intended to reflect student mastery of the content area in each grade level.
The state examines the data based on the top three levels (developing and higher) and top two levels of student performance (proficient and higher).
As reported by the state, based on the top three levels of developing, proficient, and distinguished learners, Coweta County School System students outperformed the state in 32 of the 33 assessment areas, representing 97 percent of the grade and subject tests.
District averages for middle school exceed the state average in each of the twelve assessments in those grades. In addition, of the elementary, middle and high school math courses tested, 100 percent of district averages were higher than state averages of students scoring at or above the proficient level.
School Improvement Director Dr. Julie Raschen noted that the school system showed strength in system-wide math scores. “I believe these scores are a reflection of the daily efforts of our teachers and the professional learning and support given by Dr. Lynn Skinner, our math content specialist,” said Raschen. “By developing and improving strong teaching strategies in math, our students continue to expand their critical thinking skills and apply their knowledge to address challenging mathematical concepts.”
In past assessments, math has been identified as an area for growth, and Milestones scores have highlighted significant math improvement across the Coweta County School System.
The Coweta County School System’s district averages of students performing at the proficient or distinguished level were higher than state averages in 85 percent of this year’s assessments.
At the elementary level, of the twelve assessments given in third through fifth grade, 75 percent of the district averages of students scoring as proficient or distinguished learner were higher than the state averages. Coweta County averages for middle school students were above the state averages in all twelve of the assessed content areas of student scoring at or above the proficient learner level. In high school, averages for 78 percent of the End of Course Assessments were higher than the state averages in the top two scoring levels.
“While we are continuing to examine the data and our ongoing improvement strategies, our school system’s overall performance was positive,” said Superintendent Steve Barker. “This data will provide excellent information for school improvement planning.”
“I appreciate the hard work of our students and teachers as we strive for excellence,” said Barker. “We have already begun the work utilizing this data to develop steps to move even more students to the highest level on these assessments.”
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