10th-Graders Score Lower on Standardized Tests

By ANTONIO PLANAS

REVIEW-JOURNAL

Clark County School District 10th-grade students performed worse in the reading and math sections of a standardized test compared to results from the previous year.

Students in grades three through 10 took the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in February, and 10th-graders showed the most significant change from the previous year.

Tenth-grade students scored at the 38th percentile in reading and the 40th percentile in mathematics. Both scores represented a five- percentile dip from the 2003-04 scores.

The Iowa test compares Nevada students with students across the country. A 50 percent score indicates the national average.

Sue Daellenbach, the district’s director of testing, said one reason that 10th-grade scores sunk is because the state recently changed its requirements and grouped ninth-graders who repeated their grade level with the 10th-grade scores.

“Iowa tests don’t have any grades or graduation rates attached to them,” Daellenbach said, comparing the test to the state’s proficiency exam. “It’s hard to get high school kids excited for this test.”

Students must pass the math, reading and writing portions of the state’s proficiency exam to receive a diploma at graduation.

According to district records, 2,726 ninth-graders failed to earn enough credits to move up to the next grade level in 2003-04. There were about 20,473 students in 10th grade this past school year. Officials were unable to say exactly how many repeat ninth-graders were included in the 10th-grade scores.

Trustee Denise Brodsky said the 10th-grade scores are a cause for alarm.

“It’s hard to tell what could have been the cause for these lower test scores,” she said. “But there is always concern when you see a drop like this.”

Brodsky said the district must determine whether the state’s curriculum needs to be adjusted to prepare students for the national test.

Although 10th-grade scores changed significantly, scores for elementary and middle-school students remained relatively stable.

Fifth-grade students scored at the 54th percentile in mathematics, a three percentile increase from the previous year. On the other end of the spectrum, fourth-graders scored at the 51st percentile in science, a three percentile decrease from the 2003-04 school year.