Commentary on Madison's 2012 WKCE Results

Madison Superintendent Jennifer Cheatham (PDF):

This report includes data from the Fall 2012 Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examination (WKCE). In this report, we focus on reading and math scores. Students in grades 4, 8, and 10 also take Science, Social Studies, and Language Arts tests, but these tests are not used for school accountability in the same manner as Reading and Math tests and are not aligned to the new rigorous standards, so they are not directly comparable.

This year, WKCE results reflect the state's transition to the Common Core State Standards in that DPI has adjusted the cut scores for each performance level to reflect higher expectations for student proficiency. As a result, MMSD's scores (and scores for every district in the state) look very different from prior years.

1. The new cut scores can be applied to last year's scores to provide a more meaningful year-to-year comparison. Scores have remained roughly unchanged from last year when the same scale is used.

2. Achievement gaps between subgroups of students exist across grades and locations and show few signs of either increasing or decreasing.

3. Scores showed some changes from last year at the building level, but these changes were mostly small.

4. Schools with more students scoring "Advanced" in Fall 2011 faced smaller negative impacts from the new performance cut scores.

In addition, overall proficiency rates in MMSD are close to state averages. Asian and White students in MMSD significantly outperform the state averages for their racial groups in both Reading and Math. In addition, large achievement gaps exist statewide as well as within MMSD.

Much more on the oft-criticized WKCE, here.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at April 27, 2013 1:18 AM
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