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Liberty students improve CRCT scores
Results on the upswing in 20 of 30 test areas
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Liberty County students showed marked improvement in 2014 Criterion Referenced Competency Tests over last year.

The Georgia Department of Education released district-level Criterion Referenced Competency Tests scores Wednesday. According to a state-wide press release, elementary and middle-school students met or exceeded standards on 14 of 30 content-area CRCTs, including an eight-percent increase in reading by Georgia eighth-graders.

“Reading is truly foundational to learning, so those increases in students exceeding standards are encouraging to see,” state Superintendent Dr. John Barge said. “As we transition to tests that more accurately reflect our standards, and the emphasis those standards place on critical thinking and comprehension, students’ reading abilities will help them to excel.”

Dr. Jennifer Walts, LCSS director of evaluation, assessment and accountability, declined to comment on the district’s scores. LCSS Superintendent Dr. Valya Lee also was unresponsive to a request for comment.

Liberty County students increased scores in 20 out of 30 test areas. LCSS also outperformed or matched the state average in 20 of the 30 tests.

Compared with last year’s scores, LCSS’s third-graders improved in every content area — reading, English/language arts, math, science and social studies.

Liberty County fifth-graders raised their scores in four out of five content areas, including a seven percent increase in science. Sixth-grade students also improved in four of five areas, including an eight-point jump in math and a seven-point increase in social studies.

LCSS eighth-graders improved in two content areas – a 10-point increase in science and a three-point increase in social studies. Eighth-grade scores in reading and English/language arts remained relatively level with last year, while the math score saw a slight dip, going from 81.4 percent last year to 79.3 percent this year.

Liberty’s fifth-graders bested or matched the state average across all five content areas. Most impressive was a five percent margin between LCSS and Georgia’s average in science. Liberty County also was on par with the state at every grade level in reading.

The scores are preliminary – that is, they do not include make-up tests, retests or CRCT-M scores.

According to a summary released by LCSS, 123 elementary students were retested after failing various portions of the test. Of the 41 third-graders who retook the reading test, 14 failed and 27 passed. Twenty-nine fifth-graders retook the reading test, with seven failing and 22 passing. Out of 64 fifth-graders who were retested in math, 20 failed and 44 passed.

In the eighth grade, 25 students were retested in reading, with 15 failing and 10 passing. Of 161 eighth-graders who retook the math test, 90 failed and 71 passed.

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