Foundational Skill Assessments results for February 2012 are in and show schools in and around Williams Lake landed above and below the provincial averages.
Weighing in, Cariboo Chilcotin teachers association president Joan Erb says she is not a fan of the FSAs.
“Standardized testing in any form at best can only provide a snapshot. We find that the damage done by the publication of the FSAs is really detrimental to kids, to teachers, and to parents,” Erb says.
Take a look at the students and teachers at Marie Sharpe elementary school for example, she points out.
“They’re working hard. They’re dealing with clientele unique upon itself and rather than celebrating all the hard work those schools are doing, we slam them with nobody’s meeting expectations.”
Erb hopes the FSAs are going to be phased out before February 2013.
“Let’s take that money and put it into classrooms,” she suggests. “It’s big dollars. The printing and distribution of the exam and the big cost is the marking of the exams. In this local, administrators mark the exams and it takes them five days so they have to hire a teacher-in-charge for whatever school that administrator may be at.”
Provincially Grade 4 reading tests results showed that 15 per cent of performance levels were unknown, 16 per cent were not meeting expectations, 59 per cent were meeting expectations and 11 per cent were exceeding expectations.
In writing the provincial average was 16 per cent unknown performance levels, 12 per cent not meeting expectations, 68 per cent meeting expectations, and 7 per cent exceeding expectations.
For numeracy provincially there were 15 per cent unknown performance levels, 17 per cent not meeting expectations, 57 per cent meeting expectations, and 11 per cent exceeding expectations.
At 150 Mile House Grade 4s were above the provincial average for meeting expectations in reading, and numeracy. Cataline students were above the averages for meeting and exceeding expectations in writing, and meeting expectations reading and numeracy. At Chilcotin Road more students exceeded expectations in writing, and met expectations for numeracy. Glendale elementary school had more students exceeding expectations in reading and writing, while at Kwaleen there were more students meeting expectations for reading and exceeding expectations for writing and numeracy. Marie Sharpe rated below average in all results, while Mountview had more students meeting expectations in reading. Nesika had more students meeting expectations in reading, and exceeding expectations in writing.
In the Grade 7 provincial results for reading 17 per cent of performance levels unknown, 19 per cent not meeting expectations, 54 per cent met expectations, and 10 per cent exceeded expectations.
For writing the provincial results were 18 per cent of performance levels unknown, 10 per cent not meeting expectations, 64 per cent meeting expectations, and seven per cent exceeding expectations.
Numeracy results showed 17 per cent of performance levels unknown, 23 per cent not meeting expectations, 51 per cent meeting expectations, and nine per cent exceeding expectations.
150 Mile House was above the provincial average with the number of students exceeding expectations in reading, writing and numeracy, and above average for number of students meeting expectations in reading.
The number of students exceeding expectations at Cataline for writing and numeracy was above the provincial average, as well as the number of students meeting expectations in reading and numeracy.
At Chilcotin Road, more students exceeded expectations in reading on average, and more students met expectations for numeracy.
More Glendale students met expectations in all three categories, while on average more Kwaleen students met expectations in reading and numeracy, and exceeded expectations in reading.
Mountview students had more students exceeding expectations in writing and meeting expectations in reading and numeracy. Nesika’s students had more meet expectations in all three categories, and more exceeding expectations in numeracy.
“This district has taken leaps and bounds in literacy programs and I think that’s really being demonstrated in the results. The district is doing good work and teachers are doing good work,” Erb says.