Students’ test scores show gains

Results of latest round of testing

discussed at Monday’s school board meeting
By:Krzysztof Scibiorski
   The latest standardized test scores for Hillsborough’s students showed improved performance by most students across the grades in the district.
   Virginia Gittelman, the assistant superintendent of schools, presented test results for the 2000-2001 school year during Monday night’s Board of Education meeting. The tests reveal that on both state and nationwide tests, Hillsborough’s students consistently perform well above the averages.
   In fact, Dr. Gittelman noted that as students progress in the local system, they increase their performance on the state tests, compared to students in other districts.
   Throughout her discussion of the results of the statewide fourth-grade Elementary School Proficiency Assessment (ESPA), Dr. Gittelman indicated her strong opposition to the tests.
   "It’s absolutely cruel to have the fourth-graders be subjected to this test. Also, it is absolutely insane to have first-grade teachers worry about preparing the students to take a test and not simply learn to appreciated learning and reading books," Dr. Gittelman said.
   Despite objections concerning the scoring and need for the test, Dr. Gittelman noted the students’ improved performance on the tests — 94 percent of fourth-graders exceeded or met the state’s requirements on the literacy component of the ESPA, 83 percent did so in the mathematics section and 98 percent did so in the science test. The mean scores of Hillsborough students exceeded the statewide averages on the ESPA by between 8 and 14 percent.
   Dr. Gittelman also discussed the district’s results on the Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment (GEPA), noting that it was "a proven and reliable test, unlike the ESPA." The GEPA results put 95 percent of Hillsborough’s eighth-graders at or above state mandated levels in literacy, 83 percent passed the math section and 94 percent passed the science portion.
   Hillsborough’s students scored between 11 to 12 percent above the state average on the GEPA.
   The current seniors at Hillsborough High School also performed well on the High School Proficiency Test (HSPT), the state-run test which requires passing marks for graduation from high school. Ninety-nine percent of the students achieved proficiency on the reading section, 99.5 percent passed the writing section and 97 percent passed the math section of the HSPT.
   According to Dr. Gittelman, Hillsborough’s scores on the writing section were 12 percent higher than the state mean average, the literacy scores were 19 percent above mean and 29 percent above in math.
   Dr. Gittelman added that the HSPT will be replaced with a new statewide test that will test students on all aspects of the state curriculum next year.
   Dr. Gittelman also presented last year’s SAT scores for the current senior class, stressing, "This district, unlike some others, does not focus its curriculum towards the SAT but rather towards the state’s core-curriculum."
   As usual, the district’s students exceeded both the national and state averages in both the verbal and math component of the test. The mean verbal score increased from 519 during the 1999-2000 year to 522 in 2000-2001. The average score in New Jersey is 499, while the mean national score is 506 on this part of the test. The mean math score for Hillsborough students dropped by a point from the previous year to 564, still higher than the state average of 513 and national average of 514.
   In discussing the test results, board vice president Blair Meiser congratulated the district on the impressive performance but added a note of caution in the assessment.
   "I would have liked to have seen Hillsborough’s scores compared to those of other schools in our District Factor Group (the state grouping of school districts of similar socioeconomic profiles). I think a comparison like that would have been more relevant for us," Mr. Meiser said.
   Dr. Gittelman noted that such comparisons take a significant amount of time to be prepared by the state and that they will be available in the school report cards distributed by the state in February, 2002.
   Looking back to last year’s state school report card, the Beacon found that Hillsborough school district has virtually matched the DFG in the state administered tests (ESPA, GEPA and the HSPT), but this has not been the case for the SAT.
   However, the district has been steadily closing the gap between its average SAT scores and those of its factor group in recent years. In 1996-1997 the difference was 43 points on the combined scale while in 1999-2000 the gap had narrowed to a 31 point difference.
   In a separate interview, Dr. Gittelman stressed Hillsborough’s improving scores compared to its peer districts and tried to provide some reasons for the existence of the gap.
   "Nationally there is a strong correlation between the amount of money spent per student and performance on these tests. Hillsborough spends less per pupil than any other district in our DFG and I believe that plays some role in these results," Dr. Gittelman said.
   She noted there are districts in the DFG, such as Ramapo-Indian Hills and Hunterdon Central that spend almost twice as much per pupil than Hillsborough does. Hillsborough spent $8,517 per student in the 1999-2000 school year.
   Dr. Gittelman credited the improvements throughout the district’s curriculum and a "SAT Preparation" high school elective as some of the factors in Hillsborough’s improving performance.