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M-DCPS STUDENTS’ FCAT 2.0 MATHEMATICS SCORES IMPROVED Today, the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) released the results from the Spring 2012 administration of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) 2.0 in Reading, Mathematics, and Science for students in Grades 4-8. Overall, the mathematics scores of Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) students improved across all grade levels tested. A higher percentage of M-DCPS elementary students scored in Level 3 or above than their counterparts across the state in reading. And across all grades tested, 56 percent of M-DCPS students scored in Level 3 or above in mathematics. Additionally, M-DCPS’ growth from 2011 to 2012 showed improvements in the percentage of students scoring 3 or above across all grades in mathematics. In Reading, 54 percent of all M-DCPS students scored in Level 3 or above. In the Science, students’ scores in Grades 5 and 8 held steady with 45 percent scoring a 3 or above. Overall in Science, improvement shown from 2011 to 2012 in Miami-Dade County surpassed that of comparable districts and the state. It should be noted that during the first year of administration in Spring 2011, the students’ FCAT 2.0 Reading and Mathematics test results were reported as equated FCAT Equivalent Developmental Scale Scores (EDSS). However, beginning this year, results for reading and mathematics are reported using new developmental scale scores, which can range from 140 to 302 in reading across Grades 3 through 10, and from 140 to 298 in mathematics across Grades 3 through 8. In addition to the scale scores, results also are reported in terms of Achievement Levels, which can range from Level 1 (low) to Level 5 (high). Level 3 indicates satisfactory performance. In order to facilitate comparisons across time, the FLDOE has retrofitted the Spring 2011 scores to the new FCAT 2.0 scale. As was the case last spring for reading and mathematics, students’ results during the first administration of the new FCAT 2.0 Science in Grades 5 and 8 will be reported on an “FCAT Equivalent” scale, pending the establishment of the new FCAT 2.0 Science scale and Achievement Levels, which will be available in Spring 2013. Overall, more than 211,000 M-DCPS students in Grades 3-10 took FCAT 2.0 Reading; nearly 159,000 students in Grades 3-8 took FCAT 2.0 Mathematics and approximately 52,600 students in Grades 5 and 8 took FCAT 2.0 Science. Complete District, State, and school summary reports are available on the FLDOE website at http://fcat.fldoe.org/mediapacket/2012/default.asp in addition to an interactive database that provides summaries of the retrofitted scores for 2011. The FLDOE has provided information to parents to describe the changes in scores/scales appropriate for each program accessible at http://www.floridapathtosuccess.org, with additional information on the scoring process in Understanding FCAT 2.0 Reports at http://fcat.fldoe.org/fcat2/pdf/s12uf2r.pdf. School shipments of Individual Student Reports will be forwarded to schools as soon as they are received. For more information about the attached results, please contact Deborah Karcher, Chief Information Officer, Information Technology Services, at 305-995-3751, or Gisela Feild, Administrative Director, Assessment, Research and Data Analysis, at 305-995-7512. # # # 12-JS/407/HD |
