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Northwest suburban schools grow more in math than reading

Two plus two is the same in every language. There's no trick answer, there's no need for context or comprehension to find the answer.

For those reasons and a few others, Northwest suburban students are making more progress in math than in reading, officials say.

According to the growth metric, one measurement of many released today as part of the 2014 Illinois State School Report Cards, more schools in the Northwest suburbs are scoring above the state average in math growth than in reading.

The growth metric is a measure of how much progress students are making over the course of a year, and according to state education officials it is a better way to judge student performance than individual test scores.

At Mark Twain Elementary School in Wheeling, only 22 percent of third-graders met or exceeded state standards in reading, meaning fewer than a quarter of the students are reading at an acceptable level.

However, the same report card shows Mark Twain's reading growth score is 106.9, when the state average is 99.4. In math they did even better - Mark Twain registered a 115.8, far higher than the state average 102.9.

Because of that, and a shift in the way educators are talking about which schools are doing well or poorly, Mark Twain is considered a success.

"In our schools with higher percentages of low-income and English language learners, we are going to have lower scores. That doesn't startle us," said Janelle Hockett, director of school improvement in District 21. "We know the good news is our kids are growing."

About 85 percent of Mark Twain students are Hispanic, and 85 percent qualify as low-income.

Like many Northwest suburban schools, students at Mark Twain are making more progress in math than in reading, reflecting a statewide trend. More than 20 schools in the Northwest suburbs fell below the 100-point benchmark of progress in reading, meaning they actually regressed in that subject area.

But only five schools fell back in math.

Hockett said language has a lot to do with that.

"If you had to take a (reading) test in Russian and were not given any accommodations whatsoever, you would not perform well. Someone would look at the scores and say, 'You failed that test,'" Hockett said.

But, math is math in any language.

"You've got the universal language of math that everyone gets," Hockett said. "Students can actually show what they know without the language load getting in their way."

English language learners also are allowed to take a modified test in math, but not reading, she said.

Meanwhile, schools that succeed at reading are spending extra time on the subject.

At Michael Collins Elementary in Schaumburg, where students registered the second-highest growth score in the area in reading at 111.8, officials said differentiation is key.

"We have reading as a whole group, then guided, then independent," said Nell Haack, principal.

District 54 added an acceleration period for math several years ago, which includes an additional 30 minutes of instruction where students are divided up by their skill levels to catch up or enrich their learning, Haack said. Now they've added a similar daily process for reading as well.

"Our goal is to take those high achievers and really boost them forward," she said. "Everybody comes in at a different level. Our job is to take those students as they come in and make sure they are leaving at a higher level."

Officials at Hoover Math and Science Academy in Schaumburg attributed their high math growth score - a 120 - to a similar 30-minute acceleration period in math.

"We redistribute the kids into smaller groups and focus on areas where they are struggling," Principal John Schmelzer said.

Hoover also starts STEM - science, technology, engineering and math - learning in first grade, Schmelzer said.

"It's foundational to start young," Schmelzer said. "If we can get the skills and strategies to kids when they are the youngest, the gap narrows. If students get behind at a young age, it just gets harder and the gap widens."

Patton Elementary School in Arlington Heights had the highest growth score in math in the Northwest suburbs at 121.9. Officials there attribute the success to strong teachers and strategically scheduled classes.

At Patton all fifth-grade students have math in the morning to keep them focused on the most difficult subject early in the day, said Principal Eric Larson.

"We feel like kids are the most engaged in the morning as opposed to putting it right before lunch," he said. "We're always looking at the data and adjusting our instruction that way."

Because of the No Child Left Behind waiver Illinois received in April, schools are no longer listed as "failing" due to their test scores. The new growth metric will be used as one way to judge school success and factor into teacher evaluations down the line.

"We have never gotten bogged down by how we were labeled," Hockett said. "But it was very demoralizing for a school and a district that was working so hard to be labeled as failing, because it's just one snapshot of student life."

Hockett said while the growth metric is a step in the right direction, it isn't perfect.

"When we look at the 'cut' scores we know that students in the lower proficiency levels are double penalized. They have the most growth to make," she said.

Schools are also making students stakeholders in their own learning.

Haack said that starting in kindergarten, teachers go over test scores with students, set goals and discuss working toward it.

"That way it's not an arbitrary number. They are working toward something," she said. "It helps they be active participants in their own learning."

State officials: No more 'failing' schools this year

  Students participate in a first-grade math lesson led by Allison Schroeder at Fry Elementary in Naperville, where students showed growth on this year's math test scores. Scott Sanders/ssanders@dailyherald.com
  New math lessons at Fry Elementary in Indian Prairie Unit District 204 are aligned to the Common Core, which means there is a greater focus on collaboration, understanding how to get the right answer instead of memorizing facts and learning "algebraic concepts" as early as kindergarten and first grade. Here, first-grade teacher Allison Schroeder leads her students in a recent math class. Scott Sanders/ssanders@dailyherald.com
  Allison Schroeder is a first-grade teacher at Fry Elementary in Indian Prairie Unit District 204, where students showed nearly the most growth in math performance on standardized tests among schools in districts based in DuPage County. Scott Sanders/ssanders@dailyherald.com
  Third-grade teacher Dia Rizmani explains a math problem to Allison Schwer during a special math acceleration period during class at Herbert Hoover Elementary School on Tuesday in Schaumburg. George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.com
  Fourth-grade teacher Rachel Jacobi asked students to raise their hand if they have a solution to a math problem while teaching a standard math class at Herbert Hoover Elementary School on Tuesday in Schaumburg. George LeClaire/gleclaire@dailyherald.com

Report card snapshotGrowth scores were just some of the metrics released today.

• According to the numbers, <a href="http://reportcards.dailyherald.com./details/?school=Patton+Elem+School%2C+Arlington+Heights&id-name=050160250022011">Patton Elementary School </a>in Arlington Heights had the top growth score in math at 121.9, followed by Hoover Math and Science Academy in Schaumburg with 120.

• In reading, <a href="http://reportcards.dailyherald.com./details/?school=Indian+Grove+Elem+School%2C+Mt+Prospect&id-name=050160260022003">Indian Grove Elementary School </a>in Mount Prospect had the top growth score at 111.9, followed by <a href="http://reportcards.dailyherald.com./details/?school=Michael+Collins+Elem+School%2C+Schaumburg&id-name=050160540042007">Michael Collins Elementary School </a>in Schaumburg with 111.8.

• <a href="http://reportcards.dailyherald.com./details/?school=Wm+Fremd+High+School%2C+Palatine&id-name=050162110170002">Fremd High School </a>again had the top ACT score in the Northwest suburbs with an average score of 25.1, up from 24.9 last year. Also at the top were Hersey, Prospect and Maine South. <a href="http://reportcards.dailyherald.com./details/?school=Schaumburg+High+School%2C+Schaumburg&id-name=050162110170004">Schaumburg High School </a>had the biggest gain in its ACT score, jumping 1.2 points from 20.9 in 2013 to 22.1 in 2014.

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