FeedsTests bring mixed results
There were few surprises for Wayne-Westland school officials last week when results of the first Michigan Merit Exam were released by the Michigan Department of Education.
The new test, which replaced the high school Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) test, was administered to high school juniors in the spring along with the ACT college entrance exam and WorkKeys, a national job skills assessment test.
“They are about where we anticipated,” said Wayne-Westland School Superintendent Gregory Baracy. “It’s a very rigorous test.”
The good news was that Wayne-Westland students excelled on the social studies portion of the exam. Eighty seven percent of students met or exceeded the standards; the state average was only 83 percent. Traditionally problematic for district students, the district has spent the past several years evaluating and retooling the social study curriculum in response to low test scores. Baracy said that the new strategies paid off on the Michigan Merit Exam.
“It showed up very quickly,” he said.
Overall, however, district results fell below the state average. Math and writing scores fell particularly low, with 29 percent—or 239 of 832 students—able to meet or exceed math standards and 22 percent—or 179 of 816 students—able to meet or exceed writing requirements. The state averaged a 46 percent pass rate on the math exam and 40 percent on the writing tests.
There was also room for improvement on the science tests. Forty-four percent of Wayne-Westland students —or 369 of 833 students—managed to meet or exceed the standards. Statewide, the average was 56 percent. About half of the Wayne-Westland students who took the test met or exceeded the standards for reading, as opposed to 60 percent statewide.
Baracy said that due to the new format, the test cannot be accurately compared to prior tests. Statewide, the exam is expected to serve essentially as a baseline reading against which the progress of the various districts can be measured.
“These results are about what we expected in this first administration of the Merit Exam,” said State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus. “As the new rigorous state graduation requirements are implemented, and students are exposed to more knowledge, we will see an improvement in the scores.”
Although in-depth studies into the results are ongoing, Baracy said that there are already a few preliminary changes.
“We need to focus very heavily on our math program and instruction and on our writing process,” said Baracy. “We need to reinforce and require students to do more writing across the curriculum.”
For one, instructors throughout the district will be asked to incorporate questions designed more like the test into regular exams and quizzes so that the style becomes familiar to students.
He also suggested that the district would realign the order of the math curriculum to suit the expectations of the new test.
Once the analysis of the results are completed, he said that educators will have a better idea where the problems lie—such as instructors not covering some information as well as they should or students not understand a concept as it is being taught—so that remedies can be found.
“Education is not only their future, it’s our future too,” said Baracy.
