This spring’s round of testing for the state’s public-school students showed steady improvement after dislocations brought by the COVID pandemic.
“We are not all the way back from our pre-pandemic levels, but we are getting close,” said Laura Melton, the Putnam school system’s curriculum director.
The pandemic hit Georgia in March 2020, and with it came a rush for the schoolhouse exit doors as students sought safety through the isolation of home. With it also came a variety of efforts by teachers and school systems to stay connected with the homebound students and keep them learning.
The state Department of Education’s Georgia Milestones program cancelled end-of-grade testing (for grades 3-8) and end-of-course testing (for grades 9-12) for the spring of 2020. They resumed in the spring of 2021, despite several surges in COVID cases around the state and nation.
“When we came back in (fall) 2021, there were still 50 percent, maybe
60 percent, still at home,” said Melton. “But we encouraged them to come back, and gradually they came back every nine weeks. By the end of the year there were maybe 20-25 percent at home.”
How did the students perform with class by Zoom and other techniques?
“Well, let’s say, not great,” Melton admitted. “Of course, you have to look at it on a case-bycase basis, but they did better when they got back in the building.”
The Georgia Milestones program on the Department of Education website records student scores on a 1-4 scale, roughly equivalent to F-C-B-A grades. For yearover-year comparison purposes, the number-2 scores (“developing”), 3 scores (“proficient”), and 4 scores (“distinguished”) are reported in various combinations.
At the elementary school level (grades 3-5), students are tested in English Language Arts and mathematics, with fifth graders adding a segment on science. The same pattern continues for middle schoolers, with eighth graders adding algebra, science, physical science, and social studies. For high school, however, four courses are tested: algebra 1, American literature, biology, and U.S. history.
Some examples taken from the tables of 2021 and 2022 score groupings:
Elementary school (3-5)
Math scores tended to be better than English language scores, and 2022 fifth graders improved the most over their 2021 counterparts. For example, 42 percent of 2022 third-grade math students scored as proficient or distinguished, versus 37 percent in 2021.
Middle school (6-8)
In the 10 categories of tests over the three grades, improvement in 2022 scores was shown in eight; one was the same as last year’s, and one dropped two percentage points. The highest percentage of students scored as proficient or distinguished came in advanced courses in algebra (79 percent) and physical science (65 percent), with both representing improvements over 2021 scores.
High school (9-12)
The American literature test scored the highest improvement among high schoolers when the top three perches on the testing scale are combined. Fully 87 percent of the 2022 students taking the test met state standards, compared to 65 percent the year before. When only proficient or distinguished scores were grouped, Putnam’s 2022 students performed better on all four tests than their 2021 counterparts.