By James Lomuscio
Westport Schools Superintendent Colleen Palmer said today that the scores from this spring’s state mandated SATs for juniors are not accurate indicators of future student success. She said she puts more stock in official College Board reports to come.
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Colleen Palmer,: “I would put more stock in College Board report.” Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Palmer made this comment despite the fact Westport’s scores released in a state report Wednesday are in line with other school systems in the district reference group (DIRG).
Of the 431 graded tests, the average score for English and language arts in Westport was 598, 599 in math.
Palmer said the College Board report expected in mid-September for the Class of 2016 would offer a better assessment of student achievement.
“I would put more stock in the College Board report,” she said.
She questions the 11th grade SAT results for several reasons. First, this was the first year the state used the SATs as standardized test for eleventh graders.
In the past, the state required standardized test was the Smarter Balance Assessment, Palmer said.
Typically, the closest most high school juniors come to taking college board are the PSATs, which are administered in October.
This year, students were forced to take the SATs, too. As a result, they could not opt out since it was being given as a standardized test, Palmer said. Those who did not want to take the tests called in sick that day, she added.
In addition, the data from the tests were incomplete, Palmer said.
“They had the option to call in within 48 hours and cancel their scores, so these scores would not be on their record for college,” she said.
Palmer said that she is asking the town’s educators to scrutinize the results, “to delve into it more closely and to look at it in different departments.”
