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The state Department of Education released the results for the Connecticut Mastery Tests (given to students in grades 3 to 8) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Tests (for high school sophomores) on Tuesday. Norwalk Public Schools showed improvements in some areas, but like districts across the state, also had some grades with fewer students reaching goal in some subjects.
Rivera, who was appointed earlier this summer, said he was “not surprised” to see Norwalk’s lower CMT results, because the city is transitioning from the CMT to the Common Core State Standards. The state will use the CMT for the last time next spring, before a new type of standardized test goes into effect in 2015.
“The results of these new assessments will become a new baseline for us with which to track our progress as a school district,” Rivera said in a press release.
Specifically, Rivera touted improved scores for grades 4 and 8, who also had “strong gains” in 2012 as third- and seventh-graders. He also noted that more grades posted average math scores higher than state averages this year than in 2012, and reading scores “exceeded State results at some grades for the first time.”
He also pointed out, however, that sixth-grade scores continued to show the largest gaps between Norwalk’s scores and state averages.
For the CAPT tests, Rivera said he was “very pleased” with the 2013 results. Norwalk was still behind the state average in terms of scores and number of students at Goal.
But Rivera notes that Norwalk “shows progress” in math and science, where the city’s gains in number of Goal-level scores outpaced the state average. Norwalk also had a small increase in Goal scores in writing, while the state saw a drop overall.
“Norwalk’s results are generally ‘on par’ with results across the State and as reported by the Commissioner,” Rivera said in the release.
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