|
"Above and Beyond" --
A record of success
Colonial School
District students performed extremely well on the 2005-2006
Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA), and all seven
district schools met or exceeded Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
targets as established by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002.
The percentage of students scoring at the proficient level
continued. These results can be attributed to various efforts
implemented over the past five years through our ‘Above and
Beyond’ program.”
At the
fifth grade level, 82 percent of students scored at or above the
proficient level in reading, and 86 percent were proficient or
above in math. Fifth graders also took a PSSA writing exam for
the first time during the 2005-2006 school year, and 81 percent
of the students scored at or above the proficient level, which
places Colonial in the top five out of all 34 school districts
in Montgomery and Bucks counties. In the eighth grade, 89
percent of students scored at or above the proficient level in
reading, and 77 percent were proficient or above in math. Both
of those percentages represent double digit increases from the
2003-2004 school year. On the writing exam, 83 percent of the
eighth graders scored at the proficient level or above.
Eleventh grade scores also continue to make steady improvement
as 73 percent of the students scored at or above the proficient
level in reading and 63 percent were proficient or above in
math. The reading score is up eight percent since the 2003-2004
school year while the math score has climbed five percent. On
the writing exam, 85 percent of the 11th graders scored at the
proficient level or above.
In addition
to the PSSA, the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is a benchmark
of student performance. The national college entrance exam was
revamped last year with the addition of a writing component. The
new test was significantly longer than past tests, and one
result was a nationwide drop in scores. However, Plymouth
Whitemarsh High School (PWHS) scores were consistent with local
results from the past four years and remained above the state
and national averages. The top 100 students in the Class of 2006
posted an average score of 611 in critical reading and 654 in
math.
More
students are taking the American College Testing (ACT) College
Entrance and Placement Exam, because it is becoming more widely
accepted than the SAT. The multiple-choice tests cover four
skill areas: English, mathematics, reading and science.
Fifty-two PWHS students
took the ACT in 2006, more than twice the number that took the
exam the previous year. Like the SAT, average scores for PWHS
student are above the national and state averages. The average
English score was 22.6 as compared to the state average of 21.3
and the national average of 20.6. On the math exam, PWHS
students averaged 23.6, while the state average was 21.7 and the
national mean was 20.8. PWHS students averaged 22.8 in reading
compared to state and national averages of 22.2 and 21.4,
respectively. Finally, the science average for the PWHS students
was 22.9 compared to the state average of 21.4 and the national
average of 20.9. Overall, scores for the recent PWHS students
were nearly four points higher than those posted by PWHS
students in 2003.
More Highlights Of Above and Beyond
Program
-
All seven Colonial schools exceeded
Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) targets during the 2005-2006 school year.
-
In September 2006, the Colonial
School District (CSD) received more than $382,000 in state
grants to support innovative programs.
-
CSD recently received the 2006
Pennsylvania Staff Development Council Best Practices in
Staff Development Award.
-
CSD was named a Gold Medal District
by Expansion Management Magazine in its annual review of
school districts with at least 3,300 students in grades
K-12.
-
SAT scores have seen statistically
significant increases in recent years.
-
Plymouth Whitemarsh High School (PWHS)
is accredited by the Middle State Commission on Secondary
Schools.
-
More than 17 percent of the PWHS
Class of 2006 had a final GPA of 4.0 or above.
-
Members of the PWHS Class of 2006
received nearly $2.6 million in scholarships. Class members
will attend many of the nation’s prestigious colleges and
universities, including: Penn, Columbia, Cornell,
Swarthmore, Carnegie Mellon, New York University, Brandeis,
University of Southern California, California-Berkley,
McGill, Vanderbilt, Boston College, Haverford, George
Washington, Oberlin, Lehigh, Franklin and Marshall,
Wesleyan, William and Mary, Gettysburg, Muhlenberg and
Lafayette.
-
Advanced Placement test scores and
participation rates continue to improve and are
significantly above the global average.
-
Three PWHS seniors were recently
named National Merit Scholars.
-
Five Colonial Middle School (CMS)
students scored with distinction on "above-grade-level"
exams sponsored by the Johns Hopkins University Center for
Talented Youth. To score with distinction means the students
scored higher than the average college-bound high school
senior.
-
CSD has a nationally recognized
Master Teacher Program.
-
All Colonial teachers hold the
appropriate state certification, nearly 75% have master’s
degrees, and two have achieved National Board Certification.
-
"Above and Beyond" and Pathways
programs define district, building and classroom goals, as
well as a comprehensive district-wide School Improvement
Planning Process.
-
CSD utilizes effective data
management systems to improve teaching and learning at the
district, building and classroom levels. The system is used
in combination with local, standards-based, benchmark
assessments.
Paid for by the Colonial School
Board Campaign Committee |