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District reports interim literacy and math screening gains, cautions on comparability
Summary
District staff presented interim screening results showing increases in early literacy and math proficiency across most student groups, but noted state changes to screeners and cut scores that limit comparability with past years and highlighted persistent subgroup gaps that remain.
Kate, an academic/assessment staff member, presented interim literacy and mathematics screening indicators and said the district saw notable increases in early literacy and improvements in math for many groups, but cautioned against direct year-to-year comparisons because the state changed the screener vendor and cut scores.
"You'll see that score rise precipitously ... it's not valid for comparability from last year because we have changed, the tests that students have taken," Kate said, describing the state's change to AIMSweb and updated cut scores. She said the district will use the new cut scores going forward so fall-to-fall comparisons will be comparable.
Board members and the student-support team discussed subgroup results and sample sizes. Board member Mia Coyle and others stressed attention to disparity gaps despite overall gains: one member noted overall reading proficiency rose from 47% in 2023 to 60% in the current report, and several members asked for subgroup N-sizes so the board can assess whether small sample sizes drive variability.
Kate said staff are focusing on targeted interventions, stronger routines for analyzing student work, "amplified instruction" during core time, and collaborative educator planning to close gaps. She also said multilingual and special-education staff are coordinating front-loading vocabulary and background knowledge for students who are emergent bilinguals.
The board requested follow-up materials showing group sizes (N) for the subgroups reported and asked staff to indicate how many Hispanic students are English-language learners to avoid conflating ethnicity and language status in subgroup analyses.
