West New York BOE releases PARCC testing scores with mixed results

The West New York Board of Education released the district’s first ever PARCC scores at their regularly scheduled meeting last night, with the results yielding a mixed bag. 

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Anastasia Olivero, the West New York Assistant Superintendent of Schools for Curriculum and Instruction, gave the presentation to members of the board and a select few members of the public who were in attendance.

The district administered the PARCC, which stands for Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, test for the first time ever in March and April.

Grades 3 – 11 took the english language arts portion of the test, while grades 3-8 took the math portion.

A breakdown of the english language arts test revealed that 45 percent of eighth graders reached Level 4 or Level 5, meaning that they met or exceeded grade-level expectations.

Meanwhile, the third graders performed the worst, with only 25 percent scoring in Level 4 or Level 5.

The state average for eighth graders with a Level 4 proficiency or above was 51 percent, while the same proficiency for third graders was at 44 percent.

In math, 45 percent of eighth graders once again reached a Level 4 or 5, where the state average was 51 percent.

Additionally, the end of course assessments in algebra and geometry were pretty poor.

Percentages of just 17 and 7 percent were scored in Algebra I and II, while proficiency in Geometry was just eight percent.

The state average for Algebra I is 36 percent, 24 percent for Algebra II and 22 percent for Geometry.

Olivero explained that the 53 eighth grade students that take Algebra honors were administered the Algebra I test instead of PARCC 8.

Olivero also gave her overall analysis of the results, admitting that there needs to be a greater emphasis on “infusing technology into the curriculum.”

She also noted that the district will perform item- and student-level analysis on the results. Parents looking to find out more about their child’s PARCC scores should log onto understandthescore.org.