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So, what district should you send your kids to if you want them to do well in math? Reading? Science? Writing?
Well … it depends partly on what grade they are in, but a massive release of test results by the state Thursday can give you a hint.
The state gives the annual standardized tests, officially called the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment, in four subjects now: reading, math, writing and science.
Science is the newest test added to the list, while reading and math are the only ones that count toward making “Adequate yearly Progress.” Failure to make AYP can have consequences for a school.
The math and reading tests are given in grades three through eight and 11. The writing tests are given in grades five, eight and 11, while science is given in grades four, eight and 11.
Test results are generally measured in the percentage of students who score “proficient” or “advanced,” and in Luzerne County, Dallas tops the math chart in all grades except 11, where Wyoming Area did better.
Dallas had 90 percent or more of its students score proficient or better in grades three through seven, and 83.1 percent do it in grade eight, but dropped dramatically to 56.4 percent in grade 11. Wyoming Area, in contrast, had 83.3 percent of 11th-grade students score proficient or better, an impressive showing, considering juniors are traditionally focused on other ambitions and tend to not do well in the state tests.
Pittston Area had the second best results in Luzerne County, and that was 69.3 percent.
The pattern repeats itself almost exactly in reading tests, with Dallas again posting the best results in Luzerne County in all grades save 11th, where Wyoming Area outdoes the little rural district again, though this time by a much narrower margin: 79.3 percent of 11th-graders scored proficient or better in reading in Wyoming Area, 78 percent did in Dallas.
Pittston Area came in a close third at 77.8 percent.
In science? Well, it’s Dallas all the way, garnering top honors in all three grades, though Tunkhannock Area in Wyoming County actually does a bit better in fourth grade, with a stunning 98.4 percent of those students scoring proficient or better. Dallas fourth-graders hit 97.6 percent. Dallas is tops in eighth grade with 76.9 percent, with Crestwood second at 73.6 percent and Wyoming Area third at 66.1 percent.
In 11th grade, 61.8 percent of Dallas students scored proficient or better while 51.4 percent of Pittston Area students did, making their district second. All other districts were below 50 percent.
And in writing? OK, it’s getting a little old. Dallas had the best results in grades five and eight, 80.9 percent and 90.9 percent respectively, while Wyoming Area was tops in 11th grade at an impressive 96.4 percent.
People almost always want to know the cellar dwellers as well, so here they are:
In math: third grade, Hanover Area at 65.4 percent (still solid); fourth grade, Northwest Area at 70.8 percent (very solid); fifth grade, Hanover Area at 62.4 percent; sixth grade, Northwest Area at 66.3 percent; seventh grade, Hanover Area at 61.4 percent; eighth grade, Wilkes-Barre Area at 64.4 percent; and 11th grade, Northwest Area with a poor showing of 35.6 percent.
In reading: third grade, Hanover Area, 64.4 percent; fourth grade, Hanover Area, 55.6 percent; fifth grade, Hanover Area, 50 percent; sixth grade, Wyoming Valley West at 62 percent; seventh grade, Northwest Area at 61.8 percent; eighth grade, Greater Nanticoke Area at 68.9 percent; and 11th grade, Greater Nanticoke at 49.7 percent.
In science: fourth grade, Hazleton Area, 80.4 percent (still impressive); eighth grade, Greater Nanticoke Area at 29.3 percent (dismal); and 11th grade, Greater Nanticoke again at 23.8 percent.
Lastly, in writing: fifth grade, Hanover Area, 47.3 percent; eighth grade, Greater Nanticoke Area, 58 percent; and 11th grade, Greater Nanticoke, but with a substantial 72.8 percent.
Wait till next year!