By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

Results of the state's yearly assessment of 10th-graders were recently released, showing statewide improvements in both reading and math skills.

All three Manchester public high schools showed improvement in both areas for the third year straight, though they lag slightly behind the state averages.

This year, Manchester School District officials had to present the state with a formal plan to improve several district schools. performances, since for the first two years under 2001's No Child Left Behind Act, many - including the three high schools - were dubbed by the state as "in need of improvement."

The "in need of improvement" label accompanies schools that fail to make "adequate yearly progress" by federal and state standards for two consecutive years.

Scores earned by Pembroke Academy sophomores now sit slightly above state average, after a third straight year of considerable improvement in both reading and math. PA is another of the state's schools dubbed "in need of improvement," though district officials are thrilled with this year's scores.

In May, high school sophomores statewide took the New Hampshire Education Improvement and Assessment Program (NHEIAP) test, established in 1996.

The test covers reading and math skills and places students into one of four categories: "advanced," "proficient," "basic" and "novice."

Since 2002, in order to meet adequate yearly progress as outlined by No Child Left Behind, 52 percent of 10th-graders have had to score novice or above in math, and 70 percent at novice or above in reading.

Next year, the bar will be raised as all schools will be required to reach 64 percent above novice in math, and 70 percent novice or above in reading. The goal, according to No Child Left Behind, is to have 100 percent of students at basic or above by 2014.

Schools failing to make adequate yearly progress for two consecutive years are labeled as in need of improvement, and must adopt a state-approved improvement plan. If schools fail to meet the mark in subsequent years, stiffer penalties accrue, including the potential overhauls of staff and curriculum.

A continuous challenge for schools statewide is that specific subgroups, including students with identified educational disabilities and economically disadvantaged students, must also meet the requirements of adequate yearly progress.

Some allowances, however, are made, as statewide averages for some subgroups have routinely failed to meet the mark.

In October, state officials plan to disclose which schools failed to make adequate yearly progress for 2004-05, based on a formula established by the federal Department of Education.

Manchester West
Math scores for West's 10th graders, which includes Hooksett students, have steadily improved over the past three years. Still, West had 4 percent more novice placements than than the statewide average, with only 70 percent of those tested in math scoring basic or above. On the plus side, 2 percent more West sophomores scored advanced than did sophomores statewide.

West has successfully reduced the number of sophomores testing in the novice category by 10 percent in the reading category since No Child Left Behind took effect, though the school's sophomores still lag behind state averages.

Twenty-seven percent of West 10th-graders fell into the novice category in reading, compared to a 19 percent statewide average.

Of the school's 78 10th-graders with identified educational disabilities, 69 percent were graded as novice in reading, 13 percentage points higher than the state average.

West sophomores with educational disabilities matched the 65 percent state average in math.

Manchester Central
Central High School sophomores, including Hooksett and Candia students, have made dramatic improvements over the past three years in both reading and math, yet still lag slightly behind state averages.

In reading, the school added 3 percent more students to the advanced category, and reduced the number in novice by 4 percent, to 24. Though 5 percentage points higher than statewide averages, a high 40 percent of the school's sophomores were novice in reading during the 2003-04 school year.

Central's students with disabilities scored comparably to statewide averages, and beat the statewide average of 56 percent in the novice category in reading by 5 percent.

Manchester Memorial
Manchester Memorial sophomores, like those at West and Central, have demonstrated steady improvements over the past three years, and scores now lag just slightly behind state averages. Auburn students attend high school at Memorial.

Just 20 percent of Memorial 10th graders failed to reach the top three levels in reading, and only 28 percent missed the mark in math.

The percentages of students placing in the proficient and basic categories in each subject were comparable to statewide averages.

Overview
Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Schools for the Manchester School District Frank Bass said administrators, teachers and students should be proud of the city schools. three straight years of improvement.

"We still have a long way to go, but it's clear that we're moving in the right direction," said Bass. "We completely expect to do better than the state average soon - not come close to it, not meet it - we want to exceed it."

After two continuous years without adequate yearly progress, the district is now in the process of submitting an improvement plan, to be implemented this year, to the state.

Though it's not clear whether the schools will receive the "in need of improvement" designation after the latest scores, Bass said state Department of Education officials have been complimenting the district's progress.

Bass said the district has two primary goals for its schools.

"We want every student who walks through the front door to feel that they are part of that building and that community," he said.

Goal two, said Bass, is "to have a very coordinated curriculum working throughout the district."

Pembroke Academy
Overall scores at Pembroke Academy, where Allenstown, Pembroke and Epsom students attend high school, now appear slightly better than statewide averages, though only two years ago, the school's sophomores were well behind the curve.

Pembroke Academy has reduced the number of novices in the reading category by 26 percent in that two-year stretch, while also upping the percentage of advanced students by 5 percent.

Math scores have also improved. For 2003-04, 40 percent of PA's sophomores scored in the novice category. That number is now down to 23 percent, compared to a 26 percent state average.

"If you look at the scores over the past five years, they've been getting better and better," said Pembroke Academy Headmaster Michael Reardon. "Our faculty has done a lot of real work, and I think these scores are the fruition."

Reardon said a specific issue facing Pembroke Academy educators is that students come from middle schools in four separate towns.

"We've been trying hard to build a continuity," he said, adding that the school has recently implemented multiple freshman orientation programs in the hopes of building a clear continuum of skills.

PA was labeled as in need of improvement, said Reardon, because two subgroups - students with educational disabilities and economically disadvantaged students - have struggled to meet state standards.

Both of those groups showed some improvements this year. "I think we made some substantial progress," Reardon said. "Now we're waiting to see how we make out."

Statewide
With increasing pressure to perform under No Child Left Behind, 10th-graders across the state have shown solid improvement over the past two years.

This year 72 percent of the state's sophomores scored basic or above in math, a seven-point improvement over last year.

Over the past two years, a 10 percent increase in the number of students in the top three tiers has been seen in the reading category, though this year marked only a one percent jump.

"The improvements seen are a credit to teachers, administrators, faculty, students, parents and members of the community who are working together to improve schools at the local level," said New Hampshire Commissioner of Education Lyonel Tracy.

The NHEIAP test, since its inception, had been administered also to the state's thirdand sixth-graders.

The state is switching it's assessment testing this year, now incorporating the New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP). The departments of education in Vermont and Rhode Island are also implementing the new program this school year.