OKALOOSA AND SANTA ROSA SCHOOLS SHINE IN FCAT TESTING

Just another shining example why many people are making Northwest Florida their new home. As we all know, schools are always on the minds of the parents when making decisions and with our area schools being some of the best; it is no wonder why they not only come here, but they stay here. Stay Tuned. I have heard there are some more great news coming from the Economic Development Council on our area growth.



Regional schools shine in FCAT
By RACHEL KYLER rachelk@nwfdailynews.com

Northwest Florida school districts continue to make steady strides on the FCAT. Okaloosa County and Santa Rosa County remained two of the highest performing school districts in the state. Walton County continues to score above the state average in most categories. The State Department of Education released the 2008 Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test results Tuesday for reading and math for fourth through 10th grades. Third-grade results were released last month. Test results for science were released for the fifth, eighth and 11th grades. Parents can access their children’s scores Thursday via the FCAT Parent Network. Okaloosa students showed an increase in reading proficiency from 72 to 74 percent. They improved from 70 to 80 percent in math. In reading, ninth-graders made considerable gains, increasing from 57 to 64 percent of students at or above grade-level. Okaloosa County Superintendent of Schools Alexis Tibbetts said this year’s results were “awesome.” “We are very, very proud of them,” she said. Tibbetts added that the district has been working hard to close the achievement gap for poor and minority students. She said elementary schools are starting to level off throughout the state. Despite the plateau, “we’re still doing great,” Tibbetts said. “But we can never become complacent.” Walton County met or exceeded state proficiency averages in every category except sixth-grade math. Overall, students increased from a 65 to 71 percent in math proficiency and from 63 to 65 percent in reading. Walton County Superintendent of Schools Carlene Anderson said the district will continue to work on weak areas. “In looking at test scores historically, I’m proud to see that we are continually improving and not digressing. Obviously, what we’re doing is working,” Anderson said. Walton High School Education Coordinator David Jeselnik said is high school science is an area of concern. Juniors scored 37 percent, 1 percent lower that the state average. Santa Rosa continued to remain a high-performing district. Overall, students improved from 71 to 73 percent proficiency in reading, while they increased 3 points in math to 78 percent. Santa Rosa Assistant Superintendent of Schools Tim Wrosdyck said there weren’t any scores that particularly jumped out. “We were pleased with the continued advancement of scores,” he said. He said some schools begin to level off because it is difficult to make huge strides after reaching the 80 or 90 percentile. School districts are already looking ahead to next year. Jeselnik said limited funding from the state will affect program implementation next year. “The drop in funding is going to be an issue for us,” he said. “But we’ll do the best we can with it.”