School board receives update on SOL tests
By Donna C. Gregory ASSISTANT EDITOR

Wyman

While Chesterfield students continue to do well on Standards of Learning (SOL) tests, some weaknesses are showing at the middle school level. That was the update given to the Chesterfield School Board during its November meeting last week.

Highlights included:

+ At the middle school level, only 49 percent of seventh graders and 55 percent of sixth graders passed their SOL tests in mathematics. Elementary students did remarkably better with 93 percent of third graders and 86 percent of fifth graders passing their SOL mathematics tests. School officials attributed the low scores at the middle school level to changes in test content, and added that Chesterfield's pass rates are consistent with state pass rates.

+ Students who attended the school system's SOL summer academy showed mixed results on their subject tests. Sixty-eight percent of those students passed their reading test the second time around, 58 percent passed earth science and 62 percent passed biology, but 100 percent of World History II students and 93 percent of Algebra I students passed their SOL subject tests when retested.

+ Ninety percent of high school students who took SOL tests in reading received passing scores.

+ Almost 80 percent of high school students taking SOL tests in Algebra II passed.

+ Only two of Chesterfield's 60 schools are not fully or conditionally accredited. Those not earning full accreditation this year include Falling Creek Middle School (warned in math and history) and Salem Middle School (warned in history). Cosby High School is conditionally accredited since it's a new school.

+ The school system did not fair as well in meeting federal No Child Left Behind standards. Beulah and Curtis elementary schools did not make "annual yearly progress" (AYP) as stipulated by the federal initiative. Seven of the school system's 12 middle schools, including Matoaca, Falling Creek and Chester middle schools, failed to make AYP. High schools not making AYP included Chesterfield Community, Meadowbrook and Manchester. The most common reasons cited for schools not making AYP were poor performance by students who were economically disadvantaged, those with disabilities and those with limited English proficiency.

Wyman sworn in

David Wyman was sworn in as the school board's newest member. Wyman represents the Dale District and will fill out the remainder of a term left vacant by Beth Davis when she passed away last June after battling cancer.

All school board seats will be up for grabs during next year's election in November.