Lopatcong Township looks for ways to improve test scores after state adjusts standards

Wednesday, October 14, 2009
By Sarah M. Wojcik
The Express-Times

LOPATCONG TWP. | From communication to curriculum, township school officials are looking for ways to improve elementary and middle school scores on state standardized tests following some disappointing results.

Lopatcong Township Superintendent Vicki Pede explained that as was the case for fifth-through-eighth-graders last year, test standards for third-and-fourth-graders were dramatically increased on the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge in April's test.

Many scores hovering on the edge of proficiency were bumped down due to tighter scoring on the required state standardized tests.

The number of Lopatcong Township students who scored partially proficient in language arts jumped from 7 percent in third grade to 30 percent in fourth grade, according to test results. In math, the same group of students who scored partially proficient rose from 16 percent to 30 percent between third and fourth grades.

"As an administrator, I can tell you, that's a cause for concern," Pede said Tuesday during a school board meeting. "We're not pointing fingers, but we need to look at what we're doing and do it better."

Pede stressed that the test results reflected one week in time and for this group of children, reflected a whole different test from year to year. Next year, she said the picture would be more accurate.

Test results yielded some good news in later grades. The number of students who scored as advanced proficient in language arts climbed from zero in sixth grade to 21 percent in seventh grade, test results show.

Lopatcong Township Elementary School Principal Matthew Eagleburger said with help of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Writing Project, which the board approved Tuesday, teachers will be able to assess writing progress constantly instead of only during quarterly testing periods.

"We'll be looking at the bigger picture and identifying the best ways to teach writing," he said.

Lopatcong Township Middle School Principal Rosemary Kowalchuk stressed the use of focused instruction to pinpoint trouble spots and work on them until improvement is made.

Professional development training, more analysis on testing data, and better communication between the board and the public on testing progress are among the other improvements Pede suggested for the future.