Delaware Education News

September 2008

IN THIS ISSUE:

2008 Statewide DSTP Test Results

2008 SAT Results Show Gains in Reading, Writing and Math

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2008 Statewide DSTP Test Results

Test scores of Delaware students in grades 2-10 continue to level off in reading and mathematics, according to results of the March 2008 Delaware Student Testing Program (DSTP) released today by Secretary of Education Valerie A. Woodruff.

“Nearly every grade shows 80% or more of our students meeting or exceeding standards in reading,” said Secretary of Education Valerie A. Woodruff. “At that level of success, it is unlikely to see large jumps or gains. Maintaining this level of performance is certainly commendable.” Added Woodruff, “In math, we saw gains in seven of nine grades assessed while the two other grades remained unchanged. This is also good news especially with the improvement seen in the middle school grades.”

The results are as follows:

MATHEMATICS: At grades 2-5, students meeting or exceeding the standard ranges from 87% in grade 2 to 76% in grade 5. In grades 6-8, middle school student scores range from 75% in grade 6 to 65% in grade 8. At the high school level, grade 9 student scores increased to 53% while grade 10 student scores increased slightly to 58%.

Comparing test scores to last year’s results, 77% of children tested in the third grade met the standard – the same percentage from the scores of last year’s third graders. In the fifth grade, 76% of students tested met the standard, also identical from last year’s scores.. The proportion of this year’s eighth grade students meeting or exceeding the standard is at 65%, which is a four percentage point increase over last year’s eighth graders, while in the tenth grade, 58% performed at or above standard, one percentage points higher than the tenth graders of 2006.

READING: In grades 2-5, the trend is that between 85-86% of students statewide are meeting the standard in reading. At the middle school grades, students are scoring at 81% while at the high school grades, the range of scores is between 76-71%.

Comparing this year’s test score results to the results of 2007, 82% of third grade students who took the DSTP met or exceeded the standard, a one percentage point decrease from 2007. Fifth grade reading performance increased to 86%, a one percentage increase from 2007. Eighty-one percent of eighth grade students tested met or exceeded the reading standard, a one percentage point decrease from last year. In the tenth grade, the proportion of students meeting or exceeding the standard dipped slightly to 71%, a one-percentage point decrease from 2007.

Stanford Achievement Test

Delaware students in grades 2-10 once again participated in the 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 who took the same test and shows the percentage of Delaware students who scored as well as or better than other students throughout the nation.

In math at grades 2-5, rankings ranged from 64% to 74%; in grades 6-8, rankings ranged from 67% to 69%; and in grades 9 and 10, rankings ranged from 77% to 72% respectively. In reading, rankings in grades 2-5 ranged from 67% to 77%; in grades 6-8, rankings ranged from 65% to 70%; and in grades 9 and 10, students leveled off at 72% respectively.

Visit DOE’s web site at http://www.doe.k12.de.us/programs/aab to look at data pertinent to your schools.

2008 SAT Results Show Gains in Reading, Writing and Math

--Students in public, non-public schools make gains --

The average critical reading, math and writing scores of Delaware's public and non-public college-bound seniors who took the SAT Reasoning Test increased in comparison to last year’s test scores.  On the critical reading portion of the SAT Reasoning Test, Delaware’s students, both public and non-public, scored an average of 499, a two point increase from last year. Nationally, students averaged a 502 on the critical reading portion of the SAT, remaining constant from 2007 with no change.

The College Board reported that the average mathematics score of Delaware's college-bound seniors attending the state's public and nonpublic schools was 498, also a two point increase from 2007. This year’s national average math score is 515 and no change from last year.

For the third year, results were released for the writing portion of the SAT. For Delaware’s public and non-public high school seniors, the mean score for writing was 490, a four point increase from 2007. Nationally, the average writing score was 494, and once again, no change in scores from last year.

Delaware’s SAT Reasoning Test participation rate of public/private schools 70% decreased two percentage points from 2007 but is still well above the nation’s participation rate of 45% which decreased 3% from last year. As a result, Delaware’s participation rate is ranked ninth in the nation versus tenth last year.

Public school scores in Delaware also remained stable from last year’s results. On the critical reading portion of the SAT Reasoning Test, 4,378 Delaware students (a decrease of 0.4%) averaged 482, a two point increase from last year’s results. Nationally, public school students averaged 497 on the critical reading exam, a one point decrease from last year. On the math portion of the SAT, Delaware’s public school students averaged 483, the same score achieved one year before. Nationally, public school students averaged 510, a one point increase from last year. On the writing portion of the SAT, Delaware public school students averaged 471, a three point increase while nationally, students scored 488 which was the same as last year’s results.

In Delaware’s public schools, nearly 55% of SAT Reasoning Test takers were female compared to 45% males. Male test takers scored an average of 484 on the critical reading portion of the exam while female students averaged 480. In math, male students, on average, scored 501 while female students scored 469. In writing, female students scored an average of 477 while male students averaged 464.

A breakdown of Delaware public school scores by gender and ethnicity is as follows:

Group	Number	% of Total	Read	Change From 2007	Math	Change from 2007	Writing	Change From 2007
Male	1986	45.4%	484	0	501	-1	464	+1
Female	2385	54.5%	480	+2	469	0	477	+4
American Indian	19	0.4%	471	-13	486	+1	453	-25
Asian	218	5.0%	526	-6	562	-13	523	+3
Black	1046	23.9%	418	+4	412	+1	411	+3
Mexican American	56	1.3%	440	-25	456	+9	425	-23
Puerto Rican	65	1.5%	437	-12	421	-17	423	-9
Other Hispanic	74	1.7%	454	-20	458	-7	446	-17
White	2626	60.0%	507	+2	510	+3	494	+4
Other	113	2.6%	471	+6	465	-6	459	+10
No Response	161	3.7%	469	-4	452	-22	452	-7

The number of public school students participating in AP examinations increased 7.4%, while the total number of examinations also increased by 4.6%. Of the 5607 AP examinations given to Delaware public school students, 2,906 students received a score of 3 or higher, a decrease of 1.5% over last year’s results. Generally, a score of 3 or higher is needed at most colleges and universities in order to receive course credit.

A breakdown of Delaware public school students taking AP examinations is as follows:

Group	# of Students	No. of Exams	Scores of 3-5
Male	1416	2532	1434
Female	1830	3075	1472
American Indian	9	17	7
Asian	315	714	497
Black	337	495	123
Mexican American	34	49	18
Puerto Rican	30	47	22
Other Hispanic	52	83	38
White	2296	3897	2054
Other	109	197	98
No Response	64	108	49