| Pattonville High among Top 10 in area for state exams |
| Tuesday, August 18, 2009 |
Last year, Pattonville High School students took the state's first end-of-course exams in English II, Biology and Algebra I. Recently released results show Pattonville students scored in the Top 10 among school districts in the area for the percent of students scoring proficient or advanced on the English II and Biology exams.
The Top 10 lists were compiled as part of a story published by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Aug. 13. At Pattonville High School 83.8 percent of students scored advanced or proficient on the English II test, compared to the 73 percent average at the state level. In Biology, 72.7 percent of Pattonville High School students scored advanced or proficient, compared to 55 percent at the state level. In Algebra I, middle school and high school scores contributed to the district scoring well above state average, with 63 percent of Pattonville students scoring advanced and proficient, as compared to 53 percent at the state level.
For years Missouri high school students took the Missouri Assessment Program tests in communication arts and mathematics as a way for the state and school districts to gauge how well students perform academically; however, because the tests did not impact a students’ grades or grade point average, there was little incentive for students to take the tests seriously. That changed last year as Missouri moved to using end-of-course exams at the high school level to determine student proficiency in specific subject areas.
End-of-course exams are similar to final exams given at the end of a course, except that they are standardized across the state for specific content areas. They must also count for at least 10 percent of a student’s grade in a specific course, thus providing an incentive for students to take the tests seriously and do their best work.
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