School name, number of years on AYP
Barksdale Elementary School, 7
Flat Shoals Elementary School, 7
Hicks Elementary School, 8
Hightower Trail Elementary School, 1
Honey Creek Elementary School, 7
House Elementary School, 7
Lorraine Elementary School, 7
Peek's Chapel Elementary, 7
Pine Street Elementary School, 7
Shoal Creek Elementary School, 7
Sims Elementary School, 7
Conyers Middle School, 6
Edwards Middle School, 4
General Ray Davis Middle School, 3
Memorial Middle School, 6
Heritage High School, 2
Rockdale County High School, 6
Salem High School, 6
All Rockdale schools made preliminary Adequate Yearly Progress, according to information released by the Georgia Department of Education released this week, making this the fourth consecutive year the Rockdale County Public School system made AYP.
Superintendent Dr. Samuel King said, "As the bar continues to rise in all academic areas and schools continue to implement a more rigorous curriculum, our students, teachers, administrators, and support staff continue to work hard and remain focused. This accomplishment of achieving AYP for the fourth year in a row is evidence that we are working diligently to provide all students with the necessary tools to reach their highest potential."
AYP is the formula used to determine if schools are meeting expectations under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. It consists of three parts -- test participation, academic achievement and another statistic, called a "second indicator." The academic goals continue to rise every few years toward a goal of 100 percent proficiency for all students by 2014. This year, all of the academic goals remained the same as 2008, although the graduation rate bar went up.
All students at a school, as well as any qualifying subgroup of students, must meet goals in all three categories in order to "make AYP." Schools that do not make AYP for two consecutive years in the same subject are placed in "Needs Improvement" status and face escalating consequences.
Summer retests of the CRCT and graduation testsare taken into account in the final AYP figures released in the fall.
State Superintendent Kathy Cox commended the county's achievement. "I congratulate Superintendent Samuel King and Rockdale County Public Schools for meeting AYP for the fourth consecutive year," she said. "This achievement is confirmation that Rockdale continues to attain performance objectives and encourage students to meet or exceed academic goals. I also commend Rockdale County Public Schools for implementing a comprehensive, multi-year strategic plan that enables the system to focus on student achievement and quality teaching."
For more information on the No Child Left Behind Act and Adequate Yearly Progress, visit the Georgia Department of Education at www.gadoe.org.
Check back to www.rockdalenews.com for more information.
