Points of Light

Both Kentucky and New York saw their test scores drop as they made the change to Common Core aligned tests. But there are some important exceptions to this, and we should look closer to see what we can learn from them.

As I noted in an earlier post, while most New York City schools saw significant drops in their math scores on the new tests, the Success Academies had a strikingly different outcome. Their math scores were extraordinary. All of the schools did very well, and at one school 97% of students scored proficient in math. It's interesting to note that while they also did well on the ELA tests, it is in math that the results are truly striking. Success Academies have a longer school day, but so do many schools that did poorly on the new tests. It's tempting to write this off as a side effect of excessive test prep, but, once again, many schools that are notorious for their emphasis on test prep saw their test scores fall dramatically. I see two things that really stand out on the Success Academy web site. The program is activity based and the students are encouraged to share their mathematical thinking.

Another bright spot is the District of Columbia. While these results are not as strong as what the Success Academies achieved, they are important because they include a much larger and more diverse group of students. It is clear that the Washington D. C. district has devoted resources to the Common Core transition. I like this series documenting how this transition is working out because it really brings home what this is like for real teachers as they struggle to help their students.