- April 25, 2024
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The Flagler County School District scored higher than the state in third-grade reading and math.
According to third-grade FCAT math and reading results released Thursday, May 24, Old Kings and Belle Terre elementary schools tallied the highest percentage of students in the district to score a passing grade of 3 or above on both tests.
In reading, Old Kings students scored highest, with 70% of the students earning a 3 or above. In math, Belle Terre topped the charts, with 74%.
“I’m very pleased with our scores,” said Principal Nancy Willis, of Old Kings Elementary, which scored second-best in math, as well. “Our teachers just worked very hard. We have a curriculum and we meet the state standards … and that’s just good education.”
Belle Terre also scored second-highest in reading.
“We always strive to be on top, not just in the district but in the state, as well,” said Anna Crawford, Belle Terre assistant principal. “We’re going to continue to increase our rigor and stay on our path as a data-driven school.”
To identify areas of weakness, practice assessments were also issued throughout the year, Crawford added. Teachers stayed late to tutor. Mentors did their part. And more focus was put into curriculum crossover, like teaching students to read using science magazines, instead of children’s fiction stories.
“It’s such teamwork here,” she said, “and that makes all the difference.”
Rymfire Elementary scored the lowest in the district in math, with 57%. Wadsworth had the lowest reading score, with 54% — not counting Palm Harbor Academy, with only 14 third-graders, which scored a 43%.
“We did actually anticipate that there would be declines,” said Shawn Schmidli, testing coordinator, citing the increased rigor of this year’s assessment. “(But scores) pretty much met our expectations. We were pleased to see that we were outperforming the state, as well as Putnam County and Volusia.”
Comparisons count
When analyzing FCAT data, Schmidli said comparing Flagler scores to state scores — instead of comparing 2012 scores to 2011 scores — is the truest measure of growth.
“We’re just trying to reemphasize to folks that the standard for earning a 3 or above is harder this year,” he said.
