Local FCAT writing scores up

By SYLVIA LIM

slim@bradenton.com

MANATEE --

Manatee schools' fourth-, eighth- and 10th-graders are showing improvement in their writing skills, according to the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test results released Thursday.

On the essay portion of the writing test alone - which is used to rate schools - more than two-thirds of Manatee County's fourth-, eighth- and 10th-graders passed the exams.

But the number of Manatee students passing the tests is still behind their state counterparts, according to the Florida Department of Education.

"Schools need to look at their own score and figure out what happened and what didn't happen, and figure out how to do better next year," said Carla Frazier, the district's supervisor of measurement and data.

Manatee students sat for the writing tests earlier this year and were asked to write three types of essays.

Expository writing requires students to explain something; narrative writing asks students to describe something; and persuasive writing requires students to present an argument, according to the district.

Overall, compared to last year's essay results, local students made gains.

Seventy percent of Manatee's fourth-grader passed their essay tests, up 3 percent from last year. Statewide, 77 percent passed the essay portion, down 1 percent from last year.

As for eighth-graders, 85 percent passed the essay tests, up 1 percent from last year. Statewide, 88 percent passed, up 4 percent.

Seventy-four percent of the district's 10th-graders passed the test, up 3 percent from last year. Statewide, 78 percent passed, down 1 percent.

The students' performance did not look good, however, when the results of their multiple choice exams were factored in. The multiple choice questions range from punctuation to essay structure.

Less than half of Manatee County's eighth- and 10th-graders scored at grade level when those results were taken into account, according to the state. However, more than half of Manatee's fourth-graders scored above grade level.

"Kids seem to struggle with the multiple choice questions," Frazier said. Students have consistently scored right below the cutoff point for passing grade.

But students do not have to worry about the multiple choice anymore, as that will be going away next year, she said.

Also, high schoolers do not have to worry about their writing scores being counted toward their graduation anymore, Frazier said.

'Old-school approach'

At Manatee High, the writing results seem to be a good start, Principal Bob Gagnon said.

The school - which has received a D grade for the past two years - made the largest gains among the district's traditional high schools.

Last year, 68 percent of the school's students passed the essay test, the lowest in the district. This year, 80 percent passed.

"We took the old-school approach and it really paid off," Gagnon said.

Students used their laptops less and pen and paper more, he said.

When using computers, students have a tendency to cut and paste sentences, Gagnon explained. When they write things down, it makes them think harder.

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