See how suburban Milwaukee area school districts performed on the Forward, ACT Exams in the 2021-22 school year
Suburban Milwaukee schools districts had mixed results when it came to 2021-22 state standardized testing scores.
While, statewide, fewer than half of Wisconsin students were deemed proficient in math and language arts in 2021-22, most local districts fared better.
In suburban Milwaukee school districts, the K-8 Lake Country School District led the way with the highest scores on the math portion of the Forward Exam, as the district saw a slight increase from 79.3% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 80.9% in 2022.
On the language arts portion of the Forward Exam, the district saw a slight decrease from 72.9% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 72% in 2022.
Lake Country School Superintendent Chad Schraufnagel said the district was excited about its Forward Exam results.
"This is a reflection of the dedication of the students, staff, parents, community, and board of education and the collective commitment to providing a quality education to all students who attend the Lake Country School District. We will continue to analyze our data and continue to look for ways to grow and better support our students," said Schraufnagel in an Oct. 5 email.
Another district that performed well on the Forward Exam was the K-12 Cedarburg School District. The district improved its math proficiency from 67.3% proficient or advanced in 2019 to 76.6% in 2022 and improved its language arts proficiency from 62.9% in 2019 to 68.9% in 2022.
The K-8 Hartland-Lakeside School District improved from 73.4% in math proficiency in 2019 to 75.6% proficiency in 2022. The district saw a slight decrease on the language arts portion, from 67.4% proficiency in 2019 to 65.6% proficiency in 2022.
Another K-8 district that had high 2022 marks on the Forward Exam was North Lake, which decreased in math proficiency from 78.6% in 2019 to 72.5% in 2022 on the math portion and slightly decreased in language arts proficiency from 68.8% in 2019 to 67.2% in 2022.
Merton, another K-8 district, also had high marks, improving its language arts proficiency from 63.2% in 2019 to 69.9% in 2022 and decreasing in math proficiency from 71.9% in 2019 to 69.3%.
On the flip side, some suburban Milwaukee districts saw their scores decrease in 2021-22.
Brown Deer, for example, decreased in math proficiency from 42.9% in 2019 to 25.8% in 2022. The district's language arts proficiency also decreased, declining from 39.2% in 2019 to 25.2% in 2022.
Another district that did not perform well on the Forward Exam in 2021-22 was Cudahy. The district's language arts proficiency decreased from 36.2% in 2019 to 28% in 2022 and its math proficiency decreased from 33.5% in 2019 to 23% in 2022.
Other local districts that did not fare well in 2022 on math and language arts exams:
Palmyra-Eagle decreased in math proficiency from 42.9% in 2019 to 26.9% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 37.4% in 2019 to 30% in 2022.
South Milwaukee decreased in math proficiency from 38.3% in 2019 to 24.4% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 31.6% in 2019 to 24.7% in 2022.
West Allis-West Milwaukee decreased in math proficiency from 36.9% in 2019 to 21.8% in 2022 and decreased in language arts proficiency from 40.8% in 2019 to 28.1% in 2019
The Forward Exam's math and language arts test is given annually to third- through eighth-graders statewide.
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction cautioned against comparing numbers for the Forward Exam in 2022 with those from 2021 due to low participation numbers caused by the pandemic. Some school districts were still in virtual learning at the time of testing in 2021. Scores for the exam also counted students who did not take the test as not proficient, which lowered schools' proficiency rates. Tests were canceled in 2020.
ACT testing
Area school districts also performed well on the ACT exams in 2021-22, with most districts' average composite score exceeding the 2021-22 state average composite score of 19.2.
Some districts saw high ACT average composite scores in 2021-22, which in most cases were improvements over their 2020-21 average composite scores. They included:
Whitefish Bay at 25.1, an increase from 22.7 in 2020-21
Elmbrook at 23.5, an increase from 23.0 in 2020-21
Mequon-Thiensville at 22.8, an increase from 22.5 in 2020-21
Arrowhead and Cedarburg, who each had 22.7; Arrowhead's score increased from 22.5 in 2020-21 while Cedarburg decreased from 23.4 in 2020-21
The Whitefish Bay School District sent an emailed statement to a reporter Oct. 5 attributed to Superintendent John Thomsen.
“Although this is just one measure, it is a key indicator of post-high school readiness. These results reflect our ongoing commitment to developing strong student academic and 21st century skills while addressing the whole child in a caring and supportive environment. We do not know of any other public school district in the state that has matched this high, long-standing record. Consistent ACT scores above 25 are just one reflection of the dedicated effort and commitment to learning demonstrated by our students, their families, and our entire District Team," Thomsen said in the emailed statement.
The district with the lowest composite score in the area for 2021-22 was St. Francis with 16.2. Other districts with low composite scores were Cudahy with 16.7, West Allis-West Milwaukee and Brown Deer with 17.1 and South Milwaukee with 17.2.
To see how your district performed on the Forward Exam and ACT, visit wisedash.dpi.wi.gov/.
Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Here's how suburban school districts performed on state testing
