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3rd Grade Reading Improvement in Tulsa Noted

Matt Trotter
/
KWGS

Tulsa Public Schools said preliminary results from this year’s third-grade reading tests show dramatic improvement over last year, with 70 percent of the students tested to be promoted to the 4th grade.  This is an increase of about 5 percent more students versus last year. 

“This is proof positive that Tulsa Public Schools is closing the gap and that our literacy and reading remediation efforts are working,” said Dr. Keith Ballard, Superintendent.  “Overall, the number of students who scored ‘unsatisfactory’ on the OCCT test has dropped 5 percent.  This is a tribute to our hard-working teachers, who have embraced the instructional tools, attended the workshops and done yeoman’s work to improve literacy.  We invested heavily in ensuring teachers have the right resources, assessments and instructional tools.  Our first full year of implementation of reading remediation programs using a balanced literacy model has resulted in stronger third-grade performance.  We have refined our use of data and districtwide programs to ensure continuity, especially given a high rate of student mobility.  It’s important that we acknowledge the contribution of Reading Partners and the team of more than 1,150 tutors at 15 schools who have made the commitment to read individually with a child every week.  This is a major step for TPS foundationally, and marks the beginning of a turnaround.  It is critical that all children be able to read at or above grade level, and we are making great improvements in this area.”   

Other preliminary findings:

Of the 3,660 third-grade students tested this year, 1,114 students – about 30 percent – scored “unsatisfactory.”  This is before any “good cause” exemptions have been taken into account, so it is likely the number of students retained will be reduced even further. 

Last year, preliminary results for the 2013-14 school year showed 1,120 students at risk of being held back in the third grade (out of 3,261 students), which is 35 percent “unsatisfactory.”  Ultimately, 606 students were not promoted to the 4th grade. 

According to the preliminary results, nearly 1,723 students — or 47.1 percent of those tested — received a “proficient” score. Only 1 percent — or 38 students — received an “advanced” score.  In addition to the students scoring “unsatisfactory,” 785 students (21.4 percent) received a score of “limited knowledge.” 

Under the state’s Reading Sufficiency Act, students scoring “unsatisfactory” are subject to retention if they do not meet one of the exemptions. A law passed last year also allows for a reading team consisting of parents and teachers to meet and determine whether to retain or promote a student who scored “unsatisfactory.”