School officials try to put math test scores into context

A true measure of math competency in the Clark County School District can't be made with just one round of testing, education administrators said Thursday night.

To understand the successes and failures of mathematics in district schools, parents, the public and members of the School Board need to consider a broader picture, one that includes student performance on other types of testing, grades assigned by teachers and ongoing efforts on the part of the district to improve the quality of teaching.

"I'm going to try to paint a comprehensive picture for you of where we've been, where we are and where we're going," Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Jhone Ebert said as she began a presentation for the School Board.

By the numbers, the district's progress in math is a mixed bag. The percentage of students who pass the state-mandated High School Proficiency Exam on the first try is increasing, but the district still struggles with helping credit-sufficient seniors pass the math portion of the test. Without passing the proficiency exam, students can't obtain a diploma.

The district also has found that the percentage of students passing advanced placement math exams declined slightly between 2005 and 2007, from 55.7 percent to 53.8 percent.

The percentage of students taking four years of math in high school is up tremendously, from 34.3 percent in 2004 to 66 percent in 2007. But at the same time, the percentage of middle school students passing Algebra 1 Honors has dropped off, from 95.4 percent in 2005, to 93.2 percent in 2007.

The report on the status of the district's math program comes in the wake of end-of-semester exam results that show high rates of failure across the district.

Roughly nine in 10 high school students were unable to pass first-semester exams in Algebra 1, Geometry and Algebra 2. Roughly eight in 10 eighth-graders failed the pre-algebra exam.

Deputy Superintendent of Instruction Lauren Kohut-Rost told board members that she had expected mixed results on the exams, which were given for the first time in January.

Grades earned by students taking higher math classes indicate that they've been struggling. In 2006-07, 56 percent of high school students taking Algebra 1 earned D's or F's. In Geometry, 44.7 percent of students earned D's and F's during the same year.

The tests were created as a starting point in improving the math program, Kohut-Rost said, adding that the effort to improve the math program preceded the public outcry spurred by the high failure rates on the new exams.

The district also has created an action plan to respond to the end-of-semester exam results:

• Staff members are compiling and reviewing the exam results.

• Feedback is being collected from mathematics department chairs and principals.

• An expert committee is being formed to make recommendations to the district's instruction unit.

Superintendent Walt Rulffes stressed that the tests are diagnostic tools, created to show where the district needs to improve. Math is of growing importance to students today and the district is dedicated to increased rigor.

The district has to make sure that students are prepared to enter college and the work force, he said.

Contact reporter Lisa Kim Bach at lbach@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0287.