There were big changes in last year's state-wide testing. Since 1970, Michigan schools had taken the MEAP, but in 2014, the state rolled out a new test for our students. Number two pencils became a thing of the past, as this new test was to be completed on computers. There were some growing pains, and a lot of preparation went into administering and completing the tests.
Well, the results are finally in, and we are pleased to report that Comstock students did a great job on the 2015 M-STEP (Michigan’s state-wide student assessment).
Here are some of the highlights from the results:
- State proficiency dropped 26.4% versus only a 4.7% drop for Comstock Public Schools (for grades 3-8, all subjects)
- There are 2,311 school buildings in the state of Michigan. Only 108 showed an increase between 2014 MEAP results and 2015 M-STEP results. Comstock Public Schools had two (2) buildings that showed positive results: North Elementary (13.8% growth), and STEM Academy (6.4% growth).
- Comstock’s 3rd graders beat both the state and county averages for proficiency in Math.
- Comstock’s 4th graders beat both the state and county averages for proficiency in English Language Arts.
- Comstock’s 8th graders met the state and county averages for advanced proficiency/proficiency in English Language Arts.
- The STEM Academy scored in the top 1% of school buildings in the state in overall proficiency, placing them in the 99th percentile.
- The STEM Academy was one (1) of only three (3) schools in the top one percent (1%) to have growth between the overall proficiency on the 2014 MEAP and the 2015 M-STEP (6.4% growth).
- The STEM Academy had the highest overall proficiency rate of any school building in Kalamazoo County.
- The STEM Academy had the highest percentage of students scoring in the advanced category (39.7%) of any school building in Kalamazoo County.
Overall, the students and teachers worked very hard to achieve these results, and they deserve a lot of credit. The district staff will build on these positives in the upcoming 2016 M-STEP.
Way to go, Colts!!