Delaware Student Testing Program 2005 Results
Gains Seen in Nearly Every Grade in Reading and Math
Dover, Del.–July 21, 2005 Secretary of Education Valerie A. Woodruff announced Thursday that scores on the 2005 Delaware Student Testing Program continued to improve in many grades in reading, writing and math; several grade scores remained constant while the tenth grade showed a slight decrease in this year’s test results. Students are tested in grades three, five, eight and 10.
Results are as follows:
READING:In third grade reading, 84 percent of the students who took the DSTP met or exceeded the standard, a two percentage point increase from 2004. Fifth grade reading performance leveled off at 85 percent, the same as in 2004.Seventy-eight percent of eighth grade students tested met or exceeded the reading standard, a seven-percentage point increase from last year. In the tenth grade,the proportion of students meeting or exceeding the standard dipped to 70 percent, a one-percentage point decrease from 2004.
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MATHEMATICS: In the third grade, 79 percent of children tested met the standards— a one-percentage point increase from the scores of last year’s third graders. In the fifth grade, 77 percent of students tested met the standard,an increase of two percentage points from the scores of last year’s fifth graders. The proportion of this year’s eighth grade students meeting or exceeding the standard is at 53%, three percentage points higher than last year’s eighth graders. Of this year’s tenth graders, 52% performed at or above standard, one percentage point lower than the tenth graders of 2004.
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WRITING:In writing, the most substantial increase in any of the content areas occurred as third grade student scores climbed to 69 percent meeting the standard—a seventeen point increase from last year’s third graders.Fifty-six percent of fifth grade students met the standard, which is four percentage points lower than last year’s performance. In the eighth grade, 76 percent of students tested in writing met the standard,a five-percentage point decrease from last year’s eighth graders. In the tenth grade, scores dipped to 79% of students meeting the standard, a one-percentage point decrease compared to one year ago.
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This year, for the first time, Delaware students in all four grades participated in the new, nationally-normed Stanford Achievement Test, 10th Edition (SAT 10).Comprising nearly 1/3 of the questions on the DSTP exams in reading and math, the SAT 10 allows Delaware to compare test results against students in the same grade across the country and shows the percentage of Delaware students who scored as well as or better than other students throughout the nation. In reading, grade 3 students were ranked at 72 percent; grade 5 was 77 percent; grade 8 was ranked at 70 percent and grade 10 students were ranked at 73 percent.
“We all know that the middle and high school math scores have been an ongoing concern,” said Secretary Valerie Woodruff.“We are continuing our work on a recommended curriculum for mathematics as well as for the other three major content areas.”Added Secretary Woodruff, “The Governor’s initiative to place math specialists in the 22 middle schools will provide new resources to help students. DOE will be working with these specialists on professional development in content and teaching methods.”
“Overall, our scores show the trend of continuous improvement that has been the goal of our education reform efforts over the last decade,” said Governor Ruth Ann Minner.“I thank our educators and students for their hard work and achievement as we work towards that goal.”
The public access website opens at 1 p.m. today. School personnel, parents, policy makers, and the media are encouraged to visit DOE’s website at http://www.doe.k12.de.us/aab/ to look at data pertinent to them and to their schools.
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Delaware's Department of Education is committed to promoting the highest quality education
for every Delaware student by providing visionary leadership and superior service.
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Contact Info.
Alison Kepner Delaware Department of Education 401 Federal Street, Suite #2 Dover, Delaware 19901 Phone: (302) 735-4035 Fax: (302) 739-4654 Email: akepner@doe.k12.de.us |
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