Most Wrangell students are insufficient in English language arts, math and science, according to the state standardized test scores that the Alaska Department of Education released over the summer.
The results are an amalgamation of two tests: the Alaska Science Assessment, which assesses fifth, eighth and 10th graders science skills; and the AK STAR, which assesses third through ninth grade students in their English and math proficiency.
The Wrangell school district’s proficiency levels are 10 percentage points above state average in both math and English.
However, only 35.09% of Wrangell students are either advanced or proficient in science, about two percentage points below the state average.
The Department of Education divides student scores into four categories: advanced, proficient, approaching proficient and needs support. However, scores are only released in two groups: advanced/proficient and approaching proficient/needs support.
Wrangell students’ proficiency is down in both math and English from the 2023 test scores, according to the recent data. In 2023, 50% of students were advanced or proficient in math. In 2024, that number is 46%. In the English section in 2023, 45% of students were proficient or advanced. That number fell by four percentage points in 2024.
This year, Wrangell’s science proficiency levels increased by less than two percentage points. Superintendent Bill Burr said the science scores are difficult to measure on a year-to-year basis because different students take the test every year.
The district instituted a new math curriculum ahead of the 2023-2024 school year. Burr said he expects that the results from this change will begin to take shape in next year’s standardized testing scores.
“We anticipate that next year’s math scores will increase because it’ll be the second year of familiarity in the curriculum. It’ll be a second year of familiarity for the students too,” Burr said.
Unfortunately for educators, the state did not release the previous year’s test scores until April, which meant that school administrators were not able to reevaluate the 2024-2025 curriculum based on the scores from 2023. The delay is due to a reevaluation of proficiency standards by the Department of Education, according to the Alaska Beacon news website.
This year, the Wrangell district is reevaluating its science curriculum at both the elementary and secondary schools. Burr said he and the school board’s curriculum committee will consider the test scores when making relevant changes.
The 2024-2025 school year brought with it new secondary school principal Greg Clark. He previously worked as an assistant principal in Fairbanks. Clark attributes Wrangell’s above-state-average math and English test scores to the quality of teachers working in the district.
“I think the teachers here are doing really well,” he said.
Burr added that Wrangell’s high teacher retention rate puts the district in a positive position for continuous improvement year after year.
The test scores will not affect the district’s budget for next year. Only districts in the bottom five percent of reported scores receive extra funding from the state. Wrangell’s roughly middle-of-the-pack scores do not fall into the “school improvement status” needed to acquire the additional state funding.
Going forward, Burr believes Wrangell’s scores will increase. He said the district lost students during the COVID pandemic who are now starting to come back into the classroom. The standardized testing scores reflect a lot of what was lost in the classroom, but he expects the numbers will improve in time.
“We think we should be better than 10% above the state average,” Burr said, alluding to Wrangell’s results from the current year. “But it could take a couple of years to see that growth.”
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