Tempe Union reports mixed ACT gains; district exceeds state averages while gaps persist for ELL and students with disabilities

Tempe Union High School District officials presented ACT results during the board’s regular meeting, reporting that the district overall exceeded state averages across four years of administration while calling attention to persistent gaps for English learners and many students with disabilities.

The presentation by district teaching and learning staff summarized average scale scores, proficiency percentages and growth measures across the district’s high schools. “As a district, we do exceed the state average,” the presenter said while reviewing four years of data that, she said, show relatively stable districtwide performance but variation across individual schools.

District-level proficiency figures presented to the board showed 53 percent of tested juniors proficient in ELA and 42 percent proficient in math, according to the report. Staff highlighted that some schools show year-to-year fluctuation while others have made multi-year gains.

Staff emphasized that proficiency is one way to view performance and described a separate growth measure that compares students’ trajectories against statistically expected progress. The presenter explained that growth analysis uses multiple data points, including district practice tests, and results are reported both at the student and school level.

The presentation also focused on subgroup results. District materials shown to the board stated that English learners were at 0 percent proficiency on the ACT measure presented, and that proficiency for students receiving special education services rose from 4 percent to 8 percent in the most recent cycle. Staff noted subgroup sample sizes vary and small groups are prone to larger percentage swings.

Board members asked how student feedback was gathered and whether responses represent all subgroups. Staff said the district administered an anonymous survey during advisory with an estimated 70 percent of juniors responding but that the survey cannot be disaggregated by subgroup from the version administered in advisory. “It’s administered during an advisory to all students, and we have a really good response rate,” the presenter said; she added she could not disaggregate responses by subgroup without additional effort.

Board members pressed on supports for students with disabilities who take the ACT but are not in self-contained special education programs. The presenter said students counted in special-education subgroup figures for growth analysis must have at least two practice data points plus the final assessment; she explained that the subgroup labeled “IEP 465” in the slides reflects students who met that inclusion threshold, not the entire district special-education enrollment.

Interventions described by staff included expanded practice assessments aligned to the ACT, the continued use of vendor instructional videos, targeted curricular revisions and use of IXL in certain special-education settings. Staff said the district is partnering with outside providers, including WestEd, on professional learning for English learners and continuing school-level content plans.

Staff also told the board about coming changes to the ACT itself. The presenter said the ACT is shifting from a “legacy” form to an enhanced assessment: total test time will be reduced from about 175 minutes to about 125 minutes; the English section will move from 75 to 50 items and reading and math item counts will also be reduced. The district has aligned fall and spring practice tests to the enhanced form and updated the local ACT plan accordingly.

Board members praised improvements at individual schools and urged the district to continue focusing on reading and supports for students who return to school after disciplinary incidents. Several board members also suggested emphasizing wellness and timed practice as part of preparation.

Next steps described by staff include continuing the fall and spring practice test schedule, adding earlier and more frequent timed practice, expanding outreach to ensure survey participation among targeted subgroups, and providing the board with further subgroup detail on request.