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SOL scores on the rise in Fairfax County
Fairfax County Public Schools has recovered somewhat from last year's dip in state test scores, with this year's results showing noticeable increases in many categories.
The percentage of students passing the Virginia Standards of Learning grade level tests went up by double digits in some categories, in part due to a change in the testing method for students who are still learning English.
But moreover, "it is reflective of a lot of hard work by our kids as well as our teachers," said Assistant Superintendent Pat Murphy. "We're very, very happy."
In 2007, 37 percent of county schools failed to meet federal benchmarks under No Child Left Behind, a fact that school officials largely blamed on a new requirement during the 2006-07 school year that immigrant students learning English take the same grade-level test as their peers.
Now, schools are allowed to use the Virginia Grade Level Assessment – a portfolio-based assessment method that is also used for some students with disabilities – for certain students who are very new to the English language.
With that change, 134 of the county's 190 schools met the federal benchmarks. Murphy said the school system's leadership has emphasized high expectations for all students and is focusing on closing the achievement gap between white and minority students.
While black and Hispanic students still pass the SOLs at lower rates than their white peers, the gap shrunk from a 20-25 point difference in 2007 to about a 10-point difference this year.
Even at some schools that did not achieve their No Child Left Behind goals, staffs are celebrating gains.
At Herndon's McNair Elementary School, the percentage of students passing the English exam jumped from 63 percent in 2007 to 81 percent this year, with double-digit gains in several of the demographic subgroups examined under federal rules. The percentage of McNair students passing the math SOLs, while still falling short of the benchmark of 75 percent of students passing the test, also increased by 3 percent.
"The teachers are psyched" about the gains in literacy, McNair Principal Theresa West said. "They want people to know how hard they are working."
West said in the coming school year, McNair's staff will maintain efforts to keep up English scores while putting a renewed focus on math.
"We can't afford to lose momentum," West said.
Not all parents are happy with the efforts, however. McNair parent Steve Malo said he believes the extra emphasis on helping some students slows down the pace of learning in the school's classrooms.
"I feel like the kids are held back," he said. "[Teachers] have to spend a lot of extra time with kids who don't speak English."
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