Test results: Majority of Kansas kids not meeting college-readiness expectations

State assessment results released Tuesday show that a majority of Kansas students are not on track to be ready for college-level work.

Education officials downplayed concerns, saying the results – the first collected from new Common Core-aligned state tests administered last spring – were expected because of more-rigorous tests and higher standards meant to better prepare students for life after high school.

“This is baseline,” said Education Commissioner Randy Watson. “Our teachers told us this summer, ‘Just give us time. Give us time with the new standards and the new measures, and we’ll move kids in the right direction.’”

In English, about 42 percent of Kansas students met or exceeded grade level expectations for college readiness, according to the test results, which were presented to Kansas Board of Education members during their regular meeting in Topeka.

In math, 34 percent of the students tested met or exceeded college-readiness expectations.

Results showed that nearly 80 percent of students met grade-level expectations in reading and nearly 78 percent met grade-level expectations in math. But the switch to more-rigorous tests and higher benchmarks means grade-level expectations are below college- and career-ready standards.

This past summer, about 160 language arts and math educators worked with the University of Kansas Center for Educational Testing and Evaluation, which developed the test, to define the range of test scores that qualify for each of four performance levels.

Kansas teachers set performance standards high, Watson said. And similar to other states that have switched to more-challenging assessments, Kansas saw its test scores plummet. In previous years, nearly four out of five Kansas students scored proficient on state reading and math tests.

“(Teachers) are committed to doing what’s right, and that’s raising the bar on what students should know and be able to demonstrate to meet the demands of today’s world,” Watson said. “We have to give students and schools the time needed to reach this higher academic bar.”

Younger students scored higher than older students on the new tests. Among third-graders, for example, 12 percent did not meet grade-level expectations in math; among 10th-graders, nearly 36 percent did not meet grade-level expectations.

Results released Tuesday were the first from new, technology-enhanced assessments that began two years ago. Because the 2013-14 tests were plagued with technical glitches, Kansas education officials got federal approval not to release test results that year.

In late October, schools will send out letters to parents detailing their children’s individual test results, officials said. In December, district and building-level data will be published on the Kansas Department of Education website.

Deputy Education Commissioner Brad Neuenswander warned against “using one test to be the total measure of whether or not a kid can be successful.”

Wichitan Jim McNiece, who chairs the state board, repeatedly noted that the new tests are more rigorous than previous ones, so students who previously tested as proficient might not score as career- and college-ready.

“By no means do I want to say we’re satisfied right now,” McNiece said. “We’re not satisfied.”

This story was originally published September 8, 2015 at 3:14 PM with the headline "Test results: Majority of Kansas kids not meeting college-readiness expectations."