Report card shows area schools are improving

By

The report cards are in and there is good news for the Selma City and Dallas County School Systems.

Last week the Alabama Department of Education released its annual School Accountability Report Card, a detailed summary of how public schools preformed both academically and financially this past year.

The report indicates that four Selma City Schools and two Dallas County Schools met their Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) status for this year, a term describing whether a school met its annual accountability goals based on the No Child Left Behind Act.

In the City School System, Cedar Park Elementary, Clark Elementary, Meadowview Elementary and Payne Elementary met their goal for state accountability.

“Most of our schools met or exceeded state standards,” said City Schools Spokesperson Lynn Henderson. “We are pleased with the improvements being made in all subject areas.”

J.E. Terry Elementary and Shiloh Elementary in the Dallas County School System also met their AYP status for this year.

The report also indicates that Selma City Schools, with 4,793 students, had an average daily attendance

rate of 95 percent. Dallas County Schools have 4,529 students with a 94.9 percent daily average attendance rate.

Both school systems also have over 80 percent of their students eligible for free or reduced meals, which is 30 percent higher than the state average.

The report also indicates there are 2.9 students per computer in the city school system, and 5.9 students per computer in the county schools. These results are on par with other school systems in Central Alabama.

One of the new features on the report card is this year is the result of the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test.

In Dallas County Schools, the report shows that 95 percent of fourth-graders took the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test, with 50 percent meeting the standard for reading and 33 percent meeting the standard for math.

Autauga County and Montgomery County schools, in comparison, had 38 percent of fourth-graders meet the standard for reading and 28 percent meet the standard for math.

Around 91 percent of the Dallas County’s sixth-graders took the test, with 33 percent meeting the standard for reading and 23 percent meeting the standard for math.

Around 92 percent of eighth-graders took the test, with 31 percent the standard, according to the report card.

In Selma City Schools, 96 percent of fourth-graders took the Alabama Reading and Mathematics Test, with 47 percent meeting the standard for reading and 31 percent meeting the standard for math.

These results are better than schools that have larger populations and more money, including Vestavia Hills City (with less than 20 percent of fourth-graders meeting standard), Homewood City (with less than 30 percent meeting standard), and Mountain Brook City (with less than 20 percent meeting standard).

Around 93 percent of Selma City’s sixth-graders took the test, with 40 percent meeting the standard for reading and 27 percent meeting the standard for math.

Around 91 percent of the school system’s eighth-graders took the test, with 34 percent meeting the standard.

All of these results exceed or equal other surrounding county school systems, including Perry, Chilton, Autauga, and Lowndes Counties.

The report also shows that 90 percent of the Dallas County School’s eleventh-graders took the Alabama High School Graduation Exam, with 58 percent passing the math portion and 72 percent passing the reading portion.

Of the 88 percent of eleventh-graders that took the Graduation Exam in Selma City Schools, 74 percent passed the reading portion and 71 percent passed the math portion of the test.

Results from a statewide survey show that 92 percent of all eleventh-graders took the graduation exam took the test, with 59 percent passing the math portion and 64 percent passing the reading portion of the test.

More results from the school report card can be found online at www.alsde.edu.