Plainfield Schools: 12 of 28 Campuses Make AYP

Of the 28 eligible schools, 12 schools in Plainfield School District 202 made adequate yearly progress as defined by the federal No Child Left Behind Act this year. That number is twice as many as last year, when only six of the 28 schools made AYP.

In order to make adequate yearly progress, at least 85 percent of students in all subgroups had to meet or exceed state standards in the Illinois Standard Achievement Test (ISAT), which is given to third- through eighth-graders and the Prairie State Achievement Exam (PSAE), which is given to 11th graders.

Each year, the benchmark increases by 7.5 percent so that by 2014, 100 percent of students are expected to meet or exceed state standards.

In reading, about 81 percent of District 202 students met or exceeded standards, which was up from 80 percent last year, according to district information released Monday.

Third- and fifth-graders saw the biggest increase in reading test scores, with third-graders rising from 83 percent who met standards in 2011 to 86 percent who met standards this year. Fifth-graders saw their scores rise from 82 percent of students who met state standards last year to 86 percent who met standards this year.

Meanwhile, 11th graders saw their scores dip from 53 percent who met or exceeded reading standards in 2011 to 48 percent who met or exceeded standards this year.

Students must take the Prairie State Achievement Exam to graduate, and the state includes test scores of students who were not academically ready to take the exam as juniors, but took it as seniors.

Glenn Wood, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, said the reading scores are relatively stable from last year when comparing different racial, academic and socioeconomic subgroups. Many of these subgroups, which include students who have limited English proficiency, special education needs or belong to low income families, fared about the same as last year in reading test scores, Wood said.

In math, about 87 percent of students met or exceeded state standards, up from 86 percent in 2011.

Middle school students saw the biggest gains in math scores, improving by three and four percentage points, Wood said.

Eleventh-graders saw their math scores decrease from 56 percent who met state standards in 2011 to 53 percent who met standards last year. Limited English proficiency, special education and low income students all saw their math test scores rise as well as students in the black, Hispanic and multi-racial ethnic groups.

Comparatively, Indian Prairie, Naperville, Oswego and Valley View school districts all saw the same leveling off of scores over the last three years on the state standardized tests, Wood said.

 Wood said the district has a lot to be proud of, but there is still room for improvement.

Among the future improvement goals include frequently assessing student progress, giving students high expectations, offering academic interventions and improving literacy with an emphasis on non-fiction writing, Wood said.

Elementary schools that made adequate yearly progress include Central, Creekside, Eagle Pointe, Eichelberger, Lincoln, River View, Walker’s Grove and Wesmere. Middle schools that made adequate yearly progress include Aux Sable, Drauden Point, Ira Jones and Timber Ridge.

In addition to standardized test scores, Wood on Monday released data on high school students who took advanced placement courses and tests.

This year, about 67 percent of students scored a “3” or higher on an advanced placement course exam, which is the score that many colleges or universities will award course credit.

The percentage of students rose from about 59 percent of students who earned a score of “3” or higher in 2011. Exams are graded on a five-point scale, and more students who took the exam received scores of three, four and five than last year while fewer students received the lowest possible score of one, Wood said.

More high school students are opting to take advanced placement courses than in prior years as well, Wood said.

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