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The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
The Tennessee Department of Education has released additional district-level data regarding the TCAP retake opportunity for third grade students who were in danger of retention based on their initial scores.
In the initial round of TCAP testing, around 60% of third grade students across the state did not score proficient on the English Language Arts portion. Those students were given the opportunity to participate in a retake.
Students who scored proficiently on the retake would be promoted to the fourth grade without having to take part in summer camp or additional tutoring.
“The TCAP retake assessment pathway provides an important opportunity for third grade students identified for potential retention to be able to retest to move directly to fourth grade, and we are proud of students who participated in the retake for exploring the pathway,” said Interim Commissioner Sam Pearcy. “The work and dedication of schools, districts, educators, and families across the state made this opportunity possible for our students, and we are glad to see such strong participation in the first year of implementing this law.”
Newly released district data shows that while many districts had a high percentage of eligible students take the retest, most school systems still saw less than 25% of those students earn that proficient score.
Memphis-Shelby County Schools had one of the highest percentage of students retesting with 95.6%. However, only 8.1% of those students scored proficient on that second test.
Only about half of the eligible students in Metro Nashville Public Schools took advantage of the retake opportunity. Of those, 11% met the proficiency rate and can move seamlessly onto fourth grade.
Hamilton County Schools saw 38.3% of students retaking the test, but only 3.4% of those students scored proficient on that rest.
Clay County Schools had 47.1% of eligible students retest with 62.5% of those students reaching the proficient level. Lexington City Schools also came in on the higher end with 69.8% of students retesting and 40.5% of them scoring proficient.
Those students who still fell below the mark are able to continue to the fourth grade if they participate in the summer learning camp or agree to year-long tutoring for the next school year.
Students who scored “approaching” are also eligible for a parent appeal, which is available until June 30. Parents must submit the appeal within 14 days of receiving their child’s scores from the school and must either show that the student scored proficiently on another approved Universal Reading Screener or that the student dealt with an event that had an impact on the student’s performance on the test.
The TDOE will be releasing statewide retesting data at a later date.
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
One Response
Schools are too busy teaching B.S. WOKEism, Trans and if you are a boy or girl, while they run wild instead of what they should be teaching,