Updated from this week's print edition report 

By Kristin Holtz, Staff Writer 

Months of waiting brought encouraging news for the Shakopee School District with the release of the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments-II data on Wednesday.

The district saw marked improvements on the 2009 exams with proficiency levels in several areas rising above state average.

“I’m pretty pleased with the results,” said Chris Correa, director of curriculum and instruction.

According to Minnesota Department of Education data, Shakopee MCA-II math and reading scores increased or stayed relatively steady in 2009 — similar to overall state results.

Statewide, the biggest increase in 2009 was the performance of Minnesota juniors on the MCA-II math exam. Forty-two percent of 11th-graders passed the test, compared to 34 percent in 2008. State officials attribute the increase to the new graduation requirement embedded in the test as added incentive for students to do well.

Shakopee saw modest growth in its 11th-grade performance from 32 percent in 2008 to 36 percent in 2009. Proficiency is still below the state average.

Shakopee saw its biggest gain in fourth-grade math and reading scores. Math proficiency increased 13 percentage points from 73 percent proficient to 86 percent. Reading proficiency also increased by 10 percentage points to 81 percent. Both proficiency rates are above the state average.

Reading proficiency improved at nearly every level in the Shakopee district.

“Overall, I think that some of the improvement we made in our literacy program … [has] benefited the gains in reading,” Correa said.

In its two years of existence, Eagle Creek Elementary has shown consistently high performance, Correa said. Sweeney Elementary also made some good gains, perhaps in part to some new math interventions at the school, according to Correa.

The district scored above the state average in approximately half the tested grade levels, including both the math and reading tests in third, fourth and sixth grades. Shakopee 10th-graders also scored above the state average in reading with a 75 percent proficiency rate, an increase of 6 percentage points from 2008.

“I’m really pleased with some grade levels where we made some significant gains, for fourth and sixth grade went up significantly and 10th-grade reading went up,” Correa said “[But] we still seem to have some trouble spots.”

Shakopee dropped a couple of percentage points in both math and reading in third and fifth grades. While a dip is sometimes the result of the overall ability of a particular class, Correa said fifth grade has been a sore spot for the district for some time.

Despite improving on 2008 scores, Shakopee middle and secondary students continue to struggle on the math MCA-II test, remaining below the state average in seventh, eighth and 11th grades. Correa said one explanation may be that some secondary students do not take the tests seriously. However, the low proficiency rates in the upper grades do follow state averages, she added.

The MCA-IIs meet the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which requires that all students be proficient by 2014. The assessments are administered in reading in grades 3-8 and 10 and in math in grades 3-8 and 11.

The tests measure student performance on the Minnesota Academic Standards, which define what students should know and be able to do in a particular grade. On the MCA-IIs, each student earns a score in one of four achievement levels: Does Not Meet Standards, Partially Meets Standards, Meets the Standards or Exceeds the Standards. Students who Meet or Exceed standards on the MCA-II are considered proficient.

The Shakopee School District will not know until August whether is makes Adequate Yearly Progress for 2009. The district has failed to meet AYP the last two years.

State officials anticipate the number of schools and districts not making AYP will increase this year due to only slight improvements in proficiency and the required increases in reading and math AYP targets to meet the federal government’s requirement of 100 percent proficient by 2014.

The Minnesota Department of Education is scheduled to release AYP results in early August.

Kristin Holtz can be reached at (952) 345-6678 or kholtz@swpub.com.