Pittsburgh Public Schools: 31.2% of first-time Keystone Biology takers proficient in 2024; district lays out three-part plan

Pittsburgh Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Wayne Walters told the district's education committee on Feb. 19, 2025, that 31.2% of students taking the Keystone Biology Exam for the first time were proficient in 2024, short of the district's 32.8% target for the 2024'25 school year and well below the five-year goal of 41.5% by 2027. Walters framed the results as a call to accelerate work on curriculum, teacher professional learning and attendance interventions.

Walters said the district is concentrating on first-time test takers because the biology Keystone is one of three state Keystone exams required for graduation. "It is important to focus on students taking the Keystone Biology Exam for the first time," he said, noting students may retake the exam through the end of 11th grade but that follow-on science courses often do not reinforce biology content.

The numbers Walters presented show steady cohort-to-cohort improvement from a 2021 baseline of 24% proficient to 31.2% in 2024. He underscored wide disparities by subgroup: white students were reported at 57.3% proficiency (11.4 percentage-point growth since 2021); English-language learners at 39.9% (7.8-point growth); economically disadvantaged students at 19.2% (5.5-point growth); African American students at 12.6% (6.9-point growth); and students with individualized education programs (IEPs) at 6% (2.4-point growth).

Walters and his team flagged chronic absenteeism as a major factor linked with lower proficiency. Using Classroom Diagnostic Tool…