Catonsville Schools Continue to Perform Well on State Tests

Catonsville schools continue to perform well on the Maryland School Assessments, according to test scores that were released today.

In some cases, the scores of some Catonsville schools were higher than state and county averages, according to the data, which you can find here.

Baltimore County Public Schools officials are taking the long view when looking at the 2011 Maryland School Assessment (MSA) scores, touting significant gains since 2003.

The percentage of elementary school students who scored proficient or advanced in reading on the MSA grew from 67 percent in 2003 to 90 percent in 2011. For middle school students, the reading score grew from 60 percent in 2003 to 83 percent this year. In some cases, Baltimore County scores are higher than the state average.

“We’re closing the achievement gap,” said Renee Foose, deputy superintendent of Baltimore County Public Schools. “Truly something is happening here.”

Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, all students must be proficient in reading and math by 2014. In Maryland, schools administer the Maryland School Assessment tests in both reading and math in third through eighth grades.

In order to reach 100 percent proficiency, the number of students who improve must grow each year. Students are measured as a whole and as subgroups, which include race, special education, non-native English speakers and students who receive free and reduced price meals.

But score changes from 2010 to 2011 are less significant in Baltimore County, with scores in some reading and math increasing by only one or two percent, and in some cases staying the same or dropping slightly.

Those smaller changes are harder to assess, Foose said, as every year the number of students who need to pass grows.

“Our students are chasing a moving target,” she said.

Schools with students who don't improve enough each year, as a whole or in subgroups, will fail to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

If a school fails to meet AYP, it is required to make changes to improve scores, which can include school restructuring or staff changes. Maryland has adjusted the penalties for AYP since 2007, after discovering that of the schools that fell short that year, 45 percent of them were due to a single subgroup.

Schools that enter AYP for one year will undergo an assessment of their performance, but will not face as serious consequences until after failing to make AYP four years in a row.

In Baltimore County, 23 schools--13 percent-- failed to make AYP this year - a number similar to last year. Foose said this may change due to an error in state data that is also affecting other counties. By comparison, 12 percent of Montgomery County Public Schools failed to make AYP as well as 3 percent of Howard County Public Schools and 11 percent of Harford County Public Schools.

“We are always concerned when we have a school that doesn’t meet AYP,” Foose said. “It’s unfortunate that one or two students can cause an entire school not to meet AYP.”

In Maryland, test scores grew or stayed the same when compared to 2010, with at least 70 percent of students in every grade scoring proficient or advanced. Across Maryland, elementary school reading scores are almost at 90 percent proficient or advanced.

Some of the Catonsville-area elementary schools had scores in at least one grade that exceeded 95 percent, which included: Catonsville, Hillcrest and Westchester elementary schools. High scores at Woodbridge and Johnnycake elementary schools hovered just below 95 percent. High scores at Catonsville Middle School were also above 90 percent.