Watauga schools
meet state standards Six campuses recognized for ‘high
academic growth’
By Scott Nicholson
Final school testing results confirmed that all nine Watauga
County schools met expected standards of academic growth under
the ABCs of Education end-of-year testing.
Preliminary results for the 2007-08 school year were released
in August, with the final report issued last week by the State
Board of Education. Six schools also met the standard for high
academic growth, including Bethel, Blowing Rock, Cove Creek, Green
Valley, Hardin Park and Valle Crucis.
However, Hardin Park Elementary School and Watauga High School,
despite high scores, did not register “Adequate Yearly Progress”
under a formula that tracks year-to-year testing results. Fewer
than a third of all schools in the state made Adequate Yearly
Progress as measured by the tests.
On mathematics tests for grades 3 through 8, nearly 85 percent
of the school system’s students met or exceeded expected
proficiency. That compared to 71.4 percent statewide.
In reading tests for grades 3 through 8, nearly 76 percent met
or exceeded proficiency, compared to 57.2 percent statewide. The
county’s students also exceeded statewide proficiency levels
on the science tests administered in grades 5 and 8 and in the
writing tests given in grades 4, 7 and 10.
Six schools–Bethel, Blowing Rock, Green Valley, Mabel, Parkway
and Valle Crucis—were recognized as Schools of Distinction
for 2007-08, the second-highest status category under the ABCs
system, and the other two elementary schools missed School of
Distinction status by fewer than 3 percent on proficiency test
results.
Watauga High School students posted results well above state averages
on tests in 11 academic areas, with about 79 percent of the test
results having met or exceeded expected proficiency standards,
compared to about 68 percent statewide.
Students at the high school also achieved the second-highest average
SAT score out of the state’s 115 public school systems, with
an average combined math and critical reading score of 1102, compared
to the statewide average of 1007.
Two Rivers Community School in Boone, one of 95 charter schools
participating in the state, had a composite score of 65.1 percent
and didn’t meet expected growth and did not make Adequate
Yearly Progress.
Detailed results for each school can be found online at abcs.ncpublicschools.org/abcs/.
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