DIBELS and benchmark data show mixed literacy progress; many students earn zero on writing items, district says

PGCPS testing staff presented DIBELS screening results, i‑Ready context and Benchmark 1 outcomes to the Academic Achievement Committee on Feb. 10, and they flagged writing and constructed‑response items as a major driver of some lower benchmark scores.

Dr. Jamie Bowers, director of testing, research and evaluation, said the district uses DIBELS as its universal screener for grades K–3 and reported about a 97 percent participation rate for the beginning‑of‑year DIBELS administration. At the beginning of the year, roughly 44 percent of kindergarten students were at or above the DIBELS benchmark; first‑grade, second‑grade and third‑grade at/above percentages were in the low‑to‑mid‑40s, and Bowers said the three‑year trend shows modest improvement in grades 1–3 compared with last year.

Bowers and colleagues noted the district also uses i‑Ready (K–8) and district benchmarks across grades. She said benchmark 1 participation produced roughly the same test‑taker counts as last year and emphasized two key findings: a districtwide small decline (about one percentage point) on reading benchmark 1 compared with the prior year, and a roughly four‑percentage‑point increase in mathematics benchmark 1 achievement.

A central explanation, Bowers said, is students’ performance on constructed‑response and writing items. "About 40 percent of our grade 3 students earned a 0 on the writing item," she said, and similar patterns appeared in mathematics for modeling and reasoning items; many students earned zero points on those items, which pulls down overall benchmark scores because writing can account for a large share of the test points.

Bowers described DIBELS subtest patterns and participation: the district reported typical completion rates (95–98 percent) for K–3 DIBELS and noted a Lectura (Spanish) DIBELS used at immersion schools with about an 86 percent participation rate. She summarized that beginning‑of‑year DIBELS results were generally steady or improved compared with last year in most early grades, with a slight kindergarten phonemic awareness dip that will be monitored.

Board members asked about how screening and benchmark data correlate with MCAP state results and how families receive results. Bowers said benchmarks mirror MCAP item types (multiple‑select, technology‑enhanced, constructed response) at a smaller scale and that internal psychometric work and vendor studies examine correlations; she also said parents can access individual benchmark reports through the district reporting platform, although district staff acknowledged outreach to parents about that access could be improved.

District staff said winter DIBELS and benchmark 2 data were being finalized and will be shared later in the spring.