Wells Responds to CAS Scores, Calls for Education Improvements in Every Community
July 30, 2013
(Washington, D.C.) - Today, former DC School Board Member, longtime child advocate, and member of the DC Council Committee on Education, Tommy Wells responded to student performance gains on the 2013 District of Columbia Comprehensive Assessment System exam (DC CAS), calling for further improvements in education at neighborhood public schools for every part of the District.
"We can and we must continue to advance our education system to ensure every part of the city sees quality improvements at schools in their neighborhoods, not just some. I am dedicated to working with our educators and my colleagues to build a city that everyone can live, work and raise a family in. That must include quality neighborhood schools that families can count on and plan on to support their children from start to finish for every community," said Wells, a former member of the DC School Board.
"There is a lot to celebrate in today's DC CAS exam results. Many of the District's schools are flourishing, many are making impressive gains and we should pause to applaud the hard work of our students and educators.
"However, the reality is that we have 64 DCPS and charter schools that continue to warrant the label of Priority or Focus schools, schools with unacceptably low performance in both math and reading, and distressingly low graduation rates.
"38 of these schools are in Wards 5, 7, and 8. These are Wards in which the District has closed neighborhood schools. We've removed the schools that have been the center of some of most struggling communities. We've made it impossible for elementary students to walk to their schools and more difficult for parents to participate in their children's schools."
Additional Background:
2013 School by School DC CAS Results (Statewide)
46 DC schools saw drops of five percent or greater in either math, reading or composite scores.
- 37 DC schools saw drops of five percent or greater in reading.
- 27 DC schools saw drops of five percent or greater in math.
- 25 DC schools saw drops of five percent or greater in composite scores.
32 of the 46 schools that saw drops were in Wards 5, 7, and 8; communities which have seen a great number of neighborhood school closures, while Wards 1, 2, 3, and 4 saw almost no decreases in scores.
- Ward 8 - 9 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 7 - 13 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 5 - 9 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 6 - 8 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 4 - 3 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 3 - 0 schools saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 2 - 1 school saw drops of five percent or greater
- Ward 1 - 3 schools saw drops of five percent or greater