Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Assessment ACT topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fountain Hills presents preliminary ACT results and new twice‑a‑year prep plan
Summary
Superintendent outlined a new testing strategy—ACT administered twice to juniors plus an ACT-prep elective—that produced early results showing the district’s first-round composite above the state average; staff will report outcome comparisons after the spring run.
At Tuesday’s Fountain Hills Unified School District meeting, Superintendent Dr. Jay presented preliminary ACT data and explained an expanded testing and preparation strategy the district started in the past two years.
The change: The district now administers the ACT twice to juniors (a fall diagnostic and the state window in spring) and requires an ACT-prep elective embedded in the trimester schedule. The goal: provide targeted instruction, identify students a single proficiency point from higher bands, and raise the district’s composite and proficiency points.
Preliminary results: Dr. Jay said the district’s first-round composite averaged 18.7 compared with the Arizona cohort average of 17.7. He also reported subject-level differences and proficiency-point calculations and said the district’s approach aims to identify small gains that yield outsized changes in proficiency percentages.
How it works: Principals and teachers conduct a “data dig” that flags students who are one point from the next proficiency band. Staff then target reteach and interventions in those areas, aiming to move several students up a band and thereby increase district-level proficiency.
Board questions centered on whether students receive item-level feedback, incentives for re-testing improvement and the pacing of fall-to-spring tests. Dr. Jay said staff use programs such as IXL to practice and plan to return with a comparative presentation after the spring ACT administration.
Next steps: Dr. Jay promised a follow-up presentation comparing fall and spring results when spring data are available and reiterated the district will push for high participation rates to maximize proficiency point gains.
