Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Assessment Results topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Berkeley Heights says student NJSLA scores exceed state averages; science remains an area for improvement
Summary
Acting Superintendent Mr. Phillips told the board that Berkeley Heights students scored substantially above state averages on the NJSLA in math and ELA, while science proficiency lags and will be the district's focus for targeted instruction and curriculum review.
Acting Superintendent Mr. Phillips said Berkeley Heights students continued to outperform state averages on this spring's New Jersey Student Learning Assessments, but he flagged science scores as an area that needs concentrated attention.
————————Mr. Phillips presented district-level NJSLA results for grades 3—9 in language arts and mathematics and for grades 5, 8 and 11 in science. He described the five performance levels used by the state and noted that the district typically places most students in the meeting-or-exceeding categories (levels 4 and 5), with 60'80% of students meeting passing thresholds in math at many grades compared with roughly 30'40% statewide.
————————"Most of our students are doing well," Phillips said, adding that the district plans to publish the slide deck on the district website for parents who want to inspect the data in detail.
Phillips also explained how the district reports results and handles small subgroups: Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) tests are used for a small number of students with significant needs (fewer than 10 in the district) and are not reported in the same way as NJSLA scores. He stressed that the numbers he was presenting were inclusive of all students who took the test and that the state excludes students who have been enrolled less than a year when producing certain comparative metrics.
Board members pressed for grade-level detail and for explanations of apparent dips. One board member noted a decline in sixth-grade math proficiency and asked whether accelerated-course placement (algebra/geometry sequencing) was skewing the tested cohorts.
"When you remove higher-level students from the tested cohort, it can depress proficiency for the remaining tested group," Phillips said, and he committed to a micro-level analysis with principals and supervisors to examine course sequencing, cohorts and year-to-year movement. He also agreed to check whether the district can reliably report comparisons with similar districts or DF cohorts.
The superintendent said the district saw gains in math across several grades from the previous year but that English-language arts scores consistently remain stronger than math in some grades. He recommended district teams review subcategory results and curriculum alignment (including timing of instruction relative to test dates) to identify where instruction or sequencing might be improved.
The presentation concluded with an invitation to parents to contact teachers and principals with questions and with a promise the full data files and slide deck would be posted online for deeper review.
