Southern Indiana Schools Show Improvement on ISTEP+ Scores

Test scores for Indiana schools in the 2010-2011 school year were released today, and the pass rates in Southern Indiana showed improvements.New Albany-Floyd County showed a thirteen percent increase over the past two years, while Greater Clark Schools saw a 17 percent increase over the same period.The state uses standardized test scores in math and language arts to measure the success of its schools.  The pass rates at Greater Clark schools were only one percent lower than the statewide average, which is a marked improvement over the last two years.Chief Operating officer of Greater Clark County Schools Marty Bell says the average gains on the test scores surpass the county’s goals.“We established a goal for our schools over a three year period to be able to raise our test scores 15 percent over a three year period," says Bell "and in fact we have raised our test scores approximately 17 percent over a two year period, so we’re extremely pleased with the work of our teachers.”Over the last two years, Greater Clark pass rates have jumped 15 percent in language arts and 18 percent in math, while the statewide rates in each category have seen only eight percent gains.“We’re right now right at the state average and as indicated by the test scores, we virtually doubled, over-doubled the growth between us and the state," he says "so we’re very pleased with that.”The statewide pass rate is 70 percent, which is a nine percent gain since 2009.  State superintendent Tony Bennett told other sources that the steady gains show that the state is on the right track.  The highest pass rate of 93 percent was recorded in the Carmel-Clay district.