Aug. 10, 2009

All county schools meet AYP goals

Staff Reports

The Cherokee County Board of Education announced last week that every school in the county has met 100 percent of their Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals for the 2009-10 school year.
The goals, based on test results from last schoolyear, are a good indication that the county school system continues to increase student performance, according to a press release from the Board of Education.

"I would like to congratulate our teachers, student administrators, and counselors, along with all our Board of Education employees, for going above and beyond to reach this outstanding achievement," said Superintendent Brian Johnson. "This is a great accomplishment, but with the goals increasing each year we must continue to work hard."

Johnson said the results mean the system is one step closer to reaching the ultimate goal of 100 percent student proficiency as defined by the federal No Child Left Behind law.
The academic goals in reading and math increase every year; each subgroup of students, broken down into categories based on learning ability, age and ethnicity, must meet the overall standards in order for individual schools and the system as a whole to meet its designated goals.

Dr. Ann Dykes, head of curriculum and student assessment for the system, said officials were optimistic after results from earlier testing came in this summer.

"We noted real improvement in our standardized test scores," she said. "We are so proud of all our schools."