During the 2010 – 2011 school year, St. Pius X School had three academic goals reported to the Iowa Department of Education. With approval of the School Improvement Advisory Committee (SIAC), the teachers, and the Board of Education, the following goals were established as the goals for St. Pius X School for the 2010 – 2011 school year.
Reading Comprehension: Grade 8: In the 2010-2011 school year at the St. Pius X School, our goal is to increase the percentage of grade 8 students scoring at or above the 76th percentile on the Reading Comprehension subtest of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills from the scores on the ITBS in 2009-2010, where 24 of the grade 7 students had scores at or above the 76th percentile. (We did not meet the goal, 23 students scored above the 76th percentile)
Math: Grade 8: In the 2010-2011 school year at the St. Pius X School, our goal is to increase the percentage of grade 8 students scoring at or above the 87th percentile on the Math Total of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills from the scores on the ITBS in 2009-2010, where 23 of the grade 7 students had scores at or above the 81st percentile. (We met the goal, 24 students scored above the 87th percentile.)
Science: Grade 8: In the 2010-2011 school year at the St. Pius X School, our goal is to increase the percentage of grade 8 students scoring at or above the 81st percentile on the Science test of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills from the scores on the ITBS in 2009-2010, where 23 of the grade 7 students had scores at or above the 81st percentile. (We met the goal, 24 students scored above the 81st percentile this year.)
Diocesan Assessments given to students are:
Reading Comprehension (the CRS – Constructed Response Supplement in grade 4)
Math (Math CRS in grades 6)
Science (SCASS – State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards in grade 8).
The results show the high achievement of our students.
For the Diocesan Assessments, Reading Comprehension, Math, and Science, there are four levels for scoring:
Level 1 – Novice Level, less than proficient, working below grade level performance
Level 2 – Apprentice Level, less than proficient, but showing progress toward grade level performance
Level 3 – Practitioner Level, grade level performance
Level 4 – Expert Level, working above grade level performance without prompt
In 2010 – 2011:
Reading Constructed Response Supplement:
Grade 4: 43 students, 6 scored at the Apprentice Level, 31 at Practitioner, 6 at Expert.
Math Constructed Response Supplement:
Grade 6: 45 students, 4 scored at the Novice Level, 12 at Apprentice, and 25 at Practitioner, 4 at Expert
Science State Collaborative on Assessment and Student Standards:
Grade 8: 42 students, 18 scored at the Apprentice Level, 19 at Practitioner, and 5 at Expert
There are specific grade level Reading, Math, and Science goals written for grades 3 – 8, but in general, it is always our goal to increase student achievement in all grades. The ITBS and the supplementary tests given are used as our baseline each year to develop our goals and to check if the goals were met. There are many ways to compare results of standardized test scores.
Our school goals for 2010 – 2011 are:
Reading Comprehension: In the 2011-2012 school year at St. Pius X School, the number of 5th grade students who score at or above the 78%ile on the Reading Comprehension test of ITBS will increase from the number in 2010-2011 school year. 18 of 42 students 43%
Math: In the 2011-2012 school year at St. Pius X School, the number of 6th grade students who score at or above the 76%ile on the Math total of ITBS will increase from the number in 2010-2011 school year. 20 of 42 students 48%
Science: In the 2011-2012 school year at St. Pius X School, the number of 8th grade students who score at or above the 77%ile on the Science test of ITBS will increase from the number in 2010-2011 school year. 29 of 48 students 60%
We report student progress using the Iowa Student Scores and the National Student Scores to see how our students compare to those in Iowa and in the Nation. We also compare using the national trend of proficiency. A score of the 40percentile on a standardized test like the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, is said to be meeting the national standard according to No Child Left Behind. Using that as a comparison, our students score very well.
