By Carol P. Bartold

Sep. 7, 2016:  At the beginning of the 2016-2017 academic year at The Bronxville School, the administration, staff, and board of education are seeking to move the district toward a comprehensive framework of student assessment that balances the goals most important to the district with the goals of high academic achievement. 

The board of education has established a strategy and curriculum committee to help establish that framework. The committee will develop standards for assessing students' progress in each of the four dispositions of The Bronxville Promise--innovation, leadership, critical thinking, and engagement with the world. In developing these standards, the committee will strive to ensure that students can develop skills in each of those four areas while at the same time excelling academically. 

Superintendent Dr. David Quattrone stated that the district will draw qualitative as well as quantitative connections between standardized test results and ways to increase students' levels of achievement of the dispositions of The Bronxville Promise.

Quattrone and Dr. Mara Koetke, director of curriculum and instruction, began the process of evaluating the district's status at the August 30 board of education meeting with an explanation of data provided by the most recent English language arts and mathematics tests scores. Bronxville students continue to perform well in both tests, achieving scores some 30 percent above statewide scores and significantly above overall Westchester County results.

While students showed improvement in the English language arts tests, which include both multiple choice questions and essay questions, scores on the mathematics tests went down for grade 8 students. "Something is happening with that test," Quattrone noted. "I'm not sure we understand what. There is a similar pattern statewide, so something structurally is going on with that test."

Koetke described the grade 8 mathematics curriculum at The Bronxville School as "loaded." She explained that the course of study, Functions I, includes both Math 8 Common Core standards and Algebra I for those students eligible for algebra study. "We're going to have to continue to look at if we're doing those Math 8 topics justice by doing it that way," she said, "or if there are other ways of looking at it."

Koetke stated that the district has an obligation to offer Algebra I to eligible eighth-graders as preparation for Advanced Placement mathematics courses in high school. She stated that, this past academic year, Common Core standards were accelerated in grade 6 to evaluate whether the standards can be addressed in two years through grades 6 and 7, leaving more time for focus on algebra in grade 8.

Test scores for grades 6 through 8 will be used to identify students' strengths and weaknesses. "Then we will look into where acceleration is best to make sure we're doing justice to the Common Core curriculum," Koetke said. She added that the district will closely examine pretesting data for rising grade 7 students to ensure that they have mastered the grade 6 curriculum.

Quattrone emphasized that, during the 2016-2017 academic year, the administration and staff will examine academic norms and structures that support The Bronxville Promise. "We need to move into a vertically aligned curriculum," he said, "so we know what students are doing year to year and how it progresses as far as standards they are supposed to meet."

Pictured here:  The Bronxville School.

Photo by A. Warner