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High school administrator says single-day ACT score undercounts student progress
Summary
Dr. Rashad told the Winneconne Community School District Board that the state report card’s emphasis on a single ACT testing day masks significant student growth shown on retakes and through other measures; she outlined progress checks, resource centers, dual-credit savings and an AVID partnership as part of a continuous-improvement strategy.
Dr. Rashad, the high-school presenter, told the Winneconne Community School District Board on Jan. 19 that state report-card calculations focus heavily on a single day of ACT testing and therefore can understate students’ year‑over‑year growth.
"The state assessments are just one piece of that," Dr. Rashad said, adding that some students post large improvements when they retake the ACT a month or two after the state’s single testing day. She cited examples in the class of 2026 where composite and subject scores rose substantially on retakes, and a handful of students who achieved near‑perfect scores on the preACT secure tests earlier in high school.
The superintendent and high-school staff described a set of strategies intended to capture and support broader measures of student success: progress checks (student-completed snapshots emailed to families about two weeks before a grading period ends), expanded resource centers open throughout the day (40.6% of students used the math center this year; 43.5% used the literacy center), IXL-driven individualized practice tied to test results, targeted ACT-style practice across classes, and a planned AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) partnership to support college- and career-readiness.
Dr. Rashad said the district also re‑certified as a national ACT test site so that students can take retakes in a familiar environment; she noted that national ACT test dates still require approximately $100 per student while the state-paid spring administration covers juniors during school hours.
Board members pressed for examples of the progress-check mechanism and for clarification about AVID costs. Dr. Rashad explained that the district schedules progress checks roughly two weeks before the end of progress periods, teachers and students complete a spreadsheet across class periods, and students then email the report to families. On AVID, she said the district purchases access and will train teachers for any AVID elective.
Why it matters: The board is responsible for district strategy and public accountability; Dr. Rashad emphasized that relying on a single, high‑stakes test as the primary metric can obscure other indicators of student readiness. The presentation included examples of student achievement and an estimate that dual-credit programming saves students about $120,000 annually (approximately $75,000 of that tied to Fox Valley Tech partnerships).
The board did not take immediate action on the report but discussed continuing AVID implementation and the district’s approach to communicating progress-check results with families.
