Fewer students in La Crosse County schools scored proficient and advanced on Wisconsin’s standardized test than last year.

Wisconsin’s Knowledge and Competency Examination scores for November 2007 testing revealed drops in scores in all categories for the La Crosse County school districts as well as the state.

The WKCE is a standardized test issued by Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction that measures student performance in compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act. The act was meant as a way to hold schools more accountable for student academic progress.

While there were a few bright spots in different grades and subjects, most scores went down district-wide. One district-wide bright spot occurred for West Salem. The percentage of West Salem students scoring proficient and advanced in reading increased from 89.2 percent in 2006 to 90.3 percent in 2007.

The most significant drop for the West Salem district was in language arts, from 79.8 percent of students scoring proficient and advanced in 2006 to 74.2 in 2007.

School district administrator Nancy Burns believes the WKCE does not accurately measure individual progress and people shouldn’t try to compare the scores of one year over another because it is a totally different group of students being tested.

“You’re comparing apples to oranges,” Burns said. “You are comparing one group of students to another. Plus the test changes. (WKCE) helps you see trends. But when we’re in the 90th percentile, we really feel like we’re doing a good job.”

Bangor High School Principal Don Addington agreed with Burns in discounting comparisons from year to year. He also believes WKCE scores have nothing to do with student learning.

“What studies of standardized testing show is that standardized test scores tend to be more correlated with student socio-economic background than anything the school is doing with their curriculum,” Addington said. “The public sees these very public scores and worry, but the scores aren’t indicative of student’s capabilities.”

He cites newer models of testing such as Measures of Academic Performance that provides immediate feedback, giving teachers and staff more flexibility in changing course mid semester.

Addington said parents should also look at graduation rates, attendance rates, curriculum, talk to the teachers to gauge classroom performance and find out how a teacher individually assesses each student.

Despite the challenges to the testing, WKCE is one of the only tests, other than the ACT scores, with which the public can gauge academic progress of the schools.

District-wide scores for Bangor went down in all five subject areas, the most substantial drop was a 10 percentage point drop in language arts.

In another concern, more students scored at the basic and minimum levels of performance than they have in recent years in both West Salem and Bangor districts. Almost 13 percent of Bangor students tested at the basic and minimum in reading, 29.7 percent in language arts, 24.6 percent in math, 19.6 percent in science and 13 percent in social studies.

Addington said teachers are attending data sessions to evaluate the test data but doesn’t see any need to change immediately.

“To base whole curricular changes on the dip in score from one year to the next is not wise by any means,” Addington said.

Contact Jo Anne Killeen at joanne.killeen@lee.net or (608) 786-6816.