Schools in Archuleta County made broad improvements in standardized testing scores from a year ago, demonstrating growth across subjects but falling short of state averages, according to results released by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE).
The Archuleta School District (ASD) Board of Education (BOE) discussed the district’s score results from the Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS) and SAT/PSAT results during its regular meeting held on Sept. 10.
ASD Superintendent Rick Holt presented the data as part of an update on the district’s strategic initiatives and goals.
Holt began by mentioning that, three years ago, CMAS scores showed only 28 percent of students in the district were identified as being proficient in English language arts (ELA).
“That number has grown to 42 percent in the last two years,” Holt said.
Holt mentioned the district should be excited about the progress being made across all categories, with students moving from not meeting expectations to meeting them, along with those moving from meeting expectations to exceeding expectations.
“We’re not just pushing kids into the proficiency area, we’re pulling kids out of the very bottom,” he said.
Holt indicated that SAT scores have been “kind of flat,” noting there has not been a significant increase or decrease.
He added the middle school now has a new science curriculum and that the high school “really outperformed on the science category in their school performance framework.”
Holt added that the district now has a guaranteed and viable curriculum for grades K-8, with a new math curriculum at high school.
Holt also explained the district’s performance framework considers both growth and achievement when it comes to determining a student’s score.
He noted that achievement refers to the extent in which students have met the learning objectives described in the relevant academic content standards, while growth refers to how an individual student progresses from year to year based on the state standards when compared to a similar peer group.
Holt noted that the state is putting far more weight on a student’s growth, with it accounting for 60 percent of elementary and middle school students’ final ratings, while, for high school students, growth accounts for 40 percent of a student’s final rating.
According to Holt’s presentation, for the 2022-2023 school year 18 percent of the district’s students in grades 3-8 did not meet achievement levels in ELA. For the 2023-2024 school year, that number dropped to 13 percent.
Holt indicated that the achievement and growth increases occurred across all minority groups and all economic groups.
“It is quite inspiring. Credit to everyone,” board president Bob Lynch commented, applauding the hard work from everyone in the district.
The Pagosa Peak Open School Board of Directors is anticipated to discuss its assessment results at the board’s meeting scheduled for Oct. 9.
Test score breakdown
ASD students made strides in math, science and ELA on the CMAS assessment, outperforming their results from 2023 and showing gains since the pandemic.
Despite those gains, the percentages of scores that met or exceeded CDE expectations from ASD ranked below those from around the state.
ELA
For the ELA test, administered to elementary and middle school students in grades 3-8, 39.8 percent of ASD students met or exceeded state expectations, up from 29.7 percent in 2023. The state average for the same test showed 44.1 percent of students meeting or exceeding expectations.
Every grade except for fourth demonstrated improved scores from 2023, with fifth- and seventh-graders showing the most dramatic strides.
Scores for ASD fourth-graders dipped from a year ago. This year, 30 percent of students met or exceeded state expectations; in 2023 the percentage was 36.1.
Math
Results from the CMAS math exam, also administered to grades 3-8, showed 27.3 percent of ASD students meeting or exceeding expectations — an improvement from 20.1 percent in 2023. The state average for the same test showed 34.2 percent of students meeting or exceeding expectations.
As in language arts, math scores from fourth-graders were down in 2024, with 19.2 percent meeting or exceeding state expectations in 2024 and 29.5 percent doing so in 2023.
Science
In science, results from fifth-, eighth- and 11th-graders reflected steep improvements from 2023 and fell just short of state averages.
Fifth-grade scores improved from 18.3 percent to 32.1 percent meeting or exceeding expectations in 2024, eighth-grade scores improved from 22.7 percent to 31.5 percent and scores from 11th graders increased from 17.9 percent to 28 percent meeting or exceeding expectations.
PSAT and SAT
Local ninth- and 10th-graders taking the PSAT math exam scored below 2023 averages, as did 11th-graders taking the math section of the SAT.
For 2023, 41.7 percent of ninth-grade math scores met or exceeded state expectations. For 2024, that percentage dipped to 35.3. Tenth-grade scores dipped slightly from 2023, from 29.1 to 28.8 percent meeting or exceeding expectations. Eleventh-grade math scores showed 17 percent meeting or exceeding expectations in 2024, while in 2023 the percentage was 24.3.
In reading and writing, ninth- and 10th-grade PSAT scores surpassed 2023 averages, as did scores from 11th-graders taking the reading and writing section of the SAT.
Ninth-grade reading and writing scores in 2023 showed 63.5 percent meeting or exceeding expectations; in 2024, 63.9 percent did so. In 2023, 60.4 percent of PSAT reading and writing scores from 10th-graders met or exceeded expectations; in 2024, that percentage improved to 66.1.
Eleventh-graders scored higher on the SAT reading and writing section in 2024 than in 2023, with percentages up from 48.6 percent to 57.5 percent meeting or exceeding expectations in 2024.
For more CMAS testing results, visit www.cde.state.co.us/assessment/cmas-dataandresults.
Performance framework
During the Sept. 10 meeting, the BOE also discussed the district’s accreditation rating, known as the performance framework.
“We as a district have been, the last two years, considered accredited with improvement,” Holt said, explaining that meant the district had not performed at a level that the state deemed to earn an accredited rating. “That has changed as of this year. We are now an accredited school district.”
Holt explained that means the district is now operating at a level in which the state considers, “we’re good to go.”
He added that it was a fast turnaround in becoming an accredited school district, partly due to coming out of the pandemic, “but the real truth of the matter is that’s due to the work of our building leaders and our teachers.”
Holt gave an update on the district’s strategic goals and initiatives, with the purpose of identifying progress made over the past year.
He noted that the three main areas identified by the BOE to focus on consisted of recruiting and retaining staff, increasing student outcomes, and student and staff well-being.
Holt indicated that the high school is maintaining its rating of performance plan, while the middle school “made just a phenomenal effort,” going from a priority improvement plan to a performance plan.
“Mr. Hinger and his staff have done really remarkable work, down to the person,” Holt said, referring to Pagosa Springs Middle School Principal Chris Hinger.
Holt also noted that the performance plan rating is the “highest by far in our region.”
Holt explained that in the district’s performance framework, the middle school is labeled with distinction because the growth and achievement is “beyond what the state is looking for.”
The elementary school dipped slightly from being on a performance plan and going into an improvement plan.
“This is nothing to be concerned about,” Holt said, explaining the elementary school is in a unique situation and its plan is dependent on how one grade performs.
Holt noted that the elementary administrators and teachers have done “an incredible amount of work of improving instruction” and making sure all kids are getting what they need.
Holt noted the accreditation is exciting for the district, noting, “It’s really been a significant shift.”
Lynch congratulated those involved on the work the district has done to earn the state accreditation, which received a round of applause from the rest of the board.
