Keystone Exam and PSSA Achievement Scores: 2015-2016 · Key Points Released by PDE The assessment in 2015-2016 was the second year the more rigorous PA Core Standards were assessed

Keystone Exam and PSSA Achievement Scores: 2015-2016EASD

SEPTEMBER 12, 2016

Transition Timeline for the PA Core-Aligned PSSA

September 2013: The State Board of Education adopts final standards for ELA and Mathematics to meet PA Core.

November 2013: An Independent Regulatory Review Commission approves final revisions from Chapter 4, including the PA Core Standards.

March 2014: PA Core Standards are published in PA Bulletin and become part of Chapter 4 regulations.

April 2015: PA administers the new PA Core-aligned PSSAs in Grades 3-8 in ELA and Mathematics.

June 2015: A team of 58 PA educators meets to engage in standard setting of cutoff scores.

July 2015: New cutoff scores for proficiency are approved.

Key Points Released by PDE

The assessment in 2015-2016 was the second year the more rigorous PA Core Standards were assessed by the PSSA in Grades 3-8.

A thorough transition to the new standards requires time to develop new curriculum, train teachers, and provide resources to support the new curriculum.

Other states have experienced similar results when making the transition to more rigorous standards.

While the transition to PA Core is ongoing, the 2016 statewide data reinforces the notion that the longer students are educated using the new standards, the better they will perform on the assessment. (For example, the 2016 third graders performed better in Math than the 2015 cohort of third graders because they began using the PA Core at an earlier age.)

2016 Math PSSA Scores

MATH2016 Advanced + Proficient Math

PA % EASD % DifferenceGrade 3 54 65 +11Grade 4 46 58 +12Grade 5 44 54 +10Grade 6 41 45 +4Grade 7 37 43 +6Grade 8 31 45 +14

2015-2016 Math PSSA Average Comparison

Comparison of Percentage of EASD Advanced and Proficient to Percentage of State Advanced and Proficient 2015 & 2016

Math

2015 Advanced + Proficient 2016 Advanced + ProficientPA % EASD % Difference PA % EASD % Difference

Grade 3 49 67 +18 54 65 +11Grade 4 45 54 +9 46 58 +12Grade 5 43 57 +14 44 54 +10Grade 6 40 50 +10 41 45 +4Grade 7 33 48 +15 37 43 +6Grade 8 30 36 +6 31 45 +14

2016 ELA PSSA Scores

ELA

2016 Advanced + Proficient Reading

PA % EASD % DifferenceGrade 3 60 70 +10Grade 4 58 72 +14Grade 5 61 68 +7Grade 6 61 74 +13Grade 7 61 59 -2Grade 8 58 64 +6

2015-2016 ELA PSSA Average Comparison


ELA


Grade 3 62 77 +15 60 70 +10Grade 4 59 68 +9 58 72 +14Grade 5 62 73 +11 61 68 +7Grade 6 61 64 +3 61 74 +13Grade 7 59 67 +8 61 59 -2Grade 8 58 58 0 58 64 +6

2015-2016 Science PSSA Average Comparison


SCIENCE2015 Advanced + Proficient 2016 Advanced + Proficient

PA % EASD % Difference PA % EASD % DifferenceGrade 4 49 67 +18 76 88 +10Grade 8 45 54 +9 57 71 +14

Algebra I Keystone


ALG


All EMS N/A 100 N/A N/A 100 N/A

Grade 11 N/A 88 N/A 68 85 +17

ELA Keystone


LIT


Grade 11 N/A 85 N/A 76 86 +10

Biology Keystone


BIO


Grade 11 N/A 78 N/A 65 78 +13

What the Data Means to EASD

2015-2016 achievement scores can be compared to last year’s scores to identify strengths and weaknesses, but only when they are combined with growth scores will we have a complete performance picture.

We need to continue to look deep into the data to determine where our curriculum and instructional needs exist.

We need to celebrate our successes and improve upon our weaknesses.

This is only one measure of data that we use to determine our success, and we need to weigh this data against other information that is collected.

Documents

Keystone Exam and PSSA Achievement Scores: 2015-2016 · Key Points Released by PDE The assessment in 2015-2016 was the second year the more rigorous PA Core Standards were assessed