AIMS scores mixed; Pima Butte gets an A

The 2011-2012 Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards scores and letter grades were released Thursday and the Maricopa Unified School District scores are a roller coaster of improvement and decline.

The standardized tests measure student performance in core curricula by comparing the results to state-established benchmarks.

Pima Butte Elementary School was the only MUSD school to receive a national letter grade of A. Both middle schools received D’s.

Superintendent Steve Chestnut cautioned the scores are a “good ballpark estimate as to how a school is doing, but it’s a one-year dipstick.”

The most improved school for the 2011-2012 academic year was Saddleback Elementary School, which improved in every category in terms of percentage of passing students, with its lowest improvement in reading and its greatest improvement in science. The school earned a C.

Saddleback Elementary School’s complete percentages of passing students, followed by the previous academic year’s passing percentage, were:

Math: 65 percent, an increase from 59 percent
Reading: 76 percent, up from 73 percent
Writing: 55 percent, an improvement from 49
Science: 65 percent, up from 58 percent

Last year, Ember Conley, director of assessment and accountability, said intensive support would be given to Maricopa High School and both Desert Wind and Maricopa Wells middle schools, a strategy that has paid off in the past when implemented on the elementary school level.

“With the help of the Ak-Chin grant we received, we were able to put in additional teachers, have intense professional development in math and add an academic coach at both Maricopa High School and Maricopa Wells,” Conley said Thursday.

However, although the targeted schools showed some sporadic improvement, they declined in some areas.

Maricopa High School, for example, increased its percentage of passing students in math, reading and writing, but declined in science. It earned an overall grade of C.

The high school’s percentage of passing students in the respective subjects below for the 2011-2010 academic year, followed by the previous academic year's passing percentage, were:

Math: 47 percent, an increase from 40 percent
Reading: 74 percent, up from 68 percent
Writing: 61 percent, an improvement from 54
Science: 36 percent, a decline from 41 percent

Maricopa Wells Middle School students improved in writing, stayed the same in math, and declined in reading and science, ultimately earning a D. It’s percentage of passing students in the respective subjects below for the 2011-2010 academic year, followed by the previous academic year's passing percentage, were:

Math: 41 percent, the same as the previous year
Reading: 63 percent versus 67 percent
Writing: 45 percent, up from 41 percent
Science: 49 percent, down from 53 percent

And Desert Wind Middle Schools also earned a D, faring the worst in terms of scoring by declining in math, reading and writing. It did, however, improve in science.

Math: 46 percent, down from 52 percent
Reading: 68 percent versus 75 percent
Writing: 41 percent, down from 50 percent
Science: 61 percent over 56 percent

Conley said several district issues likely contributed to the results for those three schools.

“That district, for the past three years, has consistently had a 33 percent turnover rate,” Conley said. “It’s a very high student-movement district.”

It’s a factor Chestnut also said played into a district’s test scores, saying that although the tests are standardized, “it’s a different group of students taking the test each year.”

Also, Conley said the math and science standards had recently undergone changes drastic enough to “change our entire curriculum.”

“One of the things we’re finding is that we’ve been focused on the elementary school curriculum and we’re not putting that expertise into the secondary schools.”

Additionally, Conley pointed out the elementary schools have benefited from a consistent administration the past four years, an advantage the secondary schools are only now just getting.

“In the elementary schools, this is their fourth year with that administration, and you can see their continual growth,” Conley said.

One example of the elementary schools’ continued improvement is Maricopa Elementary School, which earned a national grade of B and improved in math, reading and science, although it did have a slight decline in writing.

Math: 66 percent, up from 60 percent
Reading: 76 percent, an increase from 74 percent
Writing: 52 percent, down from 54 percent
Science: 65 percent, up from 61 percent

Butterfield Elementary increased its science scores by 6 percent over last year, and earned a grade of B.

Math: 61 percent, an increase from 60 percent
Reading: 74 percent, down from 76 percent
Writing: 58 percent versus 59 percent
Science: 64 percent, an increase from 58 percent

Conley considers both elementary schools examples of the district’s success.

“Those schools have such diverse demographics,” Conley said, citing a common challenge in education. “And some of those students come in so far behind, that for them meet and keep a ‘B,’ that’s a huge success.”

Santa Cruz Elementary School earned a C.

Math: 58 percent, down from 62 percent
Reading: 72 percent, a decrease from 76 percent
Writing: 65 percent, an increase from 60 percent
Science: 61 percent, down from 68 percent

There is a bright spot in the district, however, and that’s Pima Butte, the only school to earn an A grade, and not for the first time, either.

Pima Butte Elementary showed a significant increase in its writing score.

Math: 85 percent, a decrease from 89 percent
Reading: 88 percent, down from 92 percent
Writing: 85 percent, an improvement from 77 percent
Science: 91 percent, a rise from 89 percent

“We are very, very fortunate to have one of the only schools in the state that’s been excelling for three years,” Conley said.

Santa Rosa Elementary School essentially maintained student achievement levels from last year, with no major declines or advances. They were awarded a letter grade of B.

Math: 74 percent, just down from 76 percent
Reading: 78 percent, a drop from 81 percent
Writing: 61 percent, same as last year
Science: 63 percent, a decrease from 68 percent

***ADVERTISEMENT***“We’ve finally reached a level where we have consistent leadership (in secondary school),” Conley said. However, she added it could take up to eight years before the impact of that is seen.

Chestnut said the best way to assess a school is to look at several years’ worth of scores but, more importantly, visit the school and speak to teachers and staff.

According to the Associated Press, of the nearly 1,300 schools graded across the state 283 got A’s compared to 231 last year. More than half – 865 – got B's or C's.

None were given F’s – a grade reserved for those ranked D for three consecutive years.

For the complete AIMS scores, click here. For the complete letter grades, click here.