IN Fox Chapel Area Fall 2017 | Page 18

2016-2017 f ox c hapel a rea s chool d istrict s tate of the s chools •The Fox Chapel Area High School Madrigal Singers were selected to perform at the 2017 Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) Annual Conference. •High school senior Philip Swigon, junior Katherine Chomko, and sophomore Chloe Yofan were selected by audition to perform with the prestigious 2017 PMEA All-State Orchestra. Additionally, seven students were chosen to perform with the Western Region State Orchestra, nine students performed with the District 1 Orchestra, and 16 students were selected to perform with the PMEA District 1 Honors String Orchestra. •High school junior Elizabeth Mountz was chosen to perform with the elite 2017 PMEA All-State Wind Ensemble, and sophomore Hannah Kim was selected to perform with the exclusive PMEA All- State Symphonic Band. Four high school students were also selected for the PMEA Region I Honors Band, four were selected to perform with the District 1 East Honors Band, and seven were chosen for the District 1 Honors Band. Additionally, three high students were chosen to perform as part of the District 1 Honors Jazz Ensemble. Student Achievement T he district’s comprehensive student-benchmarking and response-to-data process requires that students in kindergarten-grade 11 are assessed quarterly using an internationally-recognized and statistically-normed assessment tool that identifi es areas of academic strengths and needs based on the Pennsylvania Core Standards for academic performance. Th e assessment is short (an average of 20-minutes per session) and provides teachers and administrators with achievement levels, as well as assisting them in developing lessons, instructional plans, and interventions to address the needs of individual students. Th rough this process, Fox Chapel Area students have continually met or exceeded both district and national growth standards in English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics on standardized assessments that are administered each year in the spring. Additionally, the district has found that since the benchmark assessment system has been implemented, the academic starting point for students has improved each fall when the fi rst benchmark assessment is administered. Th rough the extensive study of individual student results, Fox Chapel Area School District teachers and administrators continue to push students to their fullest potential for learning. 2017 PSSA Results P ercent S coring A dvAnced or P roficient on the 2017 PSSA School Math ELA Science Fairview Elementary School (Grades 3-5) Hartwood Elementary School (Grades 3-5) Kerr Elementary School (Grades 3-5) O’Hara Elementary School (Grades 3-5) Dorseyville Middle School (Grades 6-8) 95.8% 87.0% 69.3% 82.2% 63.5% 94.6% 88.8% 79.7% 89.4% 85.0% 98.2% 96.6% 93.9% 94.1% 79.1% State Averages (Grades 3-5) State Averages (Grades 6-8) 48.3% 36.9% 61.0% 60.7% 74.5% 52.7% Fox Chapel Area School District PSSA overall assessment scores have risen consecutively for the past three years. Th is comparison is important as 2014-2015 was the fi rst year that the PSSA aligned to the Pennsylvania Core Standards. • Th e PSSA English Language Arts (ELA) assessment encompasses reading, writing, and language arts. • Students in grades three-eight take the ELA and math assessments. • Students in grades four and eight also take a science assessment. • Students are rated as Advanced, Profi cient, Basic, and Below Basic. 16 Fox Chapel Area