Editorial

Test scores show value of a PCSD1 education

Posted 10/18/22

Test scores aren’t everything. School should be a place for students to grow socially, learn the soft skills that help in all walks of life. 

But good test scores certainly mean …

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Editorial

Test scores show value of a PCSD1 education

Posted

Test scores aren’t everything. School should be a place for students to grow socially, learn the soft skills that help in all walks of life. 

But good test scores certainly mean something, and judging by the latest ones at Park County School District 1, Powell’s schools are on the right track toward teaching students what they need to succeed in the future.

In the latest WYTOPP state test score results for last spring’s class, PMS eighth graders didn’t just do well, they did better than any other class in the state. This is the same class that was also part of Powell Middle School’s big honor last fall of being awarded Blue Ribbon School status, something only a few schools in the state receive each year. 

Our elementary schools deserve credit for preparing students for middle and high school as well. As an example, the current sixth grade class delivered the state’s top English, language arts scores last spring as fifth graders on the state test. 

These results all build on one another, to the point where Powell High School graduates become the bedrock of Northwest College students. In 2020-2021, concurrent PHS students added 23 units of full time equivalency (students divided by 12 credit hours) and 49 dual enrollments, by far the most of any local high school. Also, as an average of the last five years of high school graduates, a higher percentage of PHS grads attend NWC than any other high school at 37%. 

With an average graduating class the last five years of 119 students, that means 44 PHS grads are moving on to NWC each year. Judging by the success these students have contributed to throughout their time in the Powell school district, it can only be a positive for the local college to have them there.

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