This year, we continued our journey to improve literacy achievement at Whiteside. Building on last year's spring reading screeners and provincial assessments, we implemented more comprehensive reading assessments this year, evaluating both word reading accuracy and reading comprehension. Every student engaged in oral reading with their teacher and demonstrated their understanding by answering questions about the text. These assessments were conducted consistently in both French and English.

For example, our school-wide data revealed a notable increase in the percentage of students achieving "Proficient" or "Extending" levels in reading comprehension, rising from 32% in 2023 to 36% in 2024. Furthermore, our primary grades demonstrated significant gains, with the percentage of proficient readers increasing from 22% to 36%. These results highlight the positive impact of our focused efforts on literacy development.

Reading Results

Overall School:

• Emerging: Decreased from 23.6% to 18% (positive change!)
• Developing: Slight decrease from 44.4% to 43% (positive change)
• Proficient: Increased from 32% to 36% (positive change!)
• Extending: Increased from 0% to 3% (positive change!)

Primary:

• Emerging: Decreased from 37% to 27% (significant positive change)
• Developing: Decreased from 41% to 34% (positive change)
• Proficient: Increased from 22% to 36% (significant positive change)
• Extending: Increased from 0% to 2% (positive change)

Middle:

• Emerging: Slight increase from 15% to 19%
• Developing: Slight decrease from 67% to 61%
• Proficient: Slight increase from 18% to 20%
• Extending: Remained at 0%

Upper:

• Emerging: Decreased from 16% to 11% (positive change)
• Developing: Slight increase from 39% to 40%
• Proficient: Slight decrease from 45% to 44%
• Extending: Increased from 0% to 5% (positive change)

Summary of Findings:

• Positive Trend Overall: The school saw a notable improvement in reading proficiency overall, with more students moving into the "Proficient" and "Extending" categories.
• Primary Success: The Primary grades showed the most significant gains in proficiency.
• Middle Needs Attention: The Middle grades had the least amount of change and still have a high percentage of students in the "Developing" category. This might be an area to focus on.
• Extending Growth: It's encouraging to see growth in the "Extending" category across most grade levels.

Writing Results

Let's dive into comparing the writing data from 2023 to 2024:

Overall School:

• Emerging: Decreased from 23% to 20% (positive change!)
• Developing: Decreased from 52.8% to 48% (positive change)
• Proficient: Increased from 22.6% to 28% (positive change!)
• Extending: Increased from 1.6% to 3% (positive change!)

Primary:

• Emerging: Decreased from 36% to 29% (positive change)
• Developing: Decreased from 59% to 43% (significant positive change)
• Proficient: Increased from 5% to 26% (significant positive change)
• Extending: Increased from 0% to 2% (positive change)

Middle:

• Emerging: Decreased from 36% to 22% (positive change)
• Developing: Increased from 52% to 67%
• Proficient: Decreased from 12% to 11%
• Extending: Remained at 0%

Upper:

• Emerging: Decreased from 12% to 10% (positive change)
• Developing: Slight decrease from 50% to 45% (positive change)
• Proficient: Increased from 36% to 38% (positive change)
• Extending: Increased from 2% to 6% (positive change)

Summary of Findings:

• Positive Trend Overall: Similar to reading, the school shows improvement in writing proficiency, with more students moving into the "Proficient" and "Extending" categories.
• Primary & Upper Shine: The Primary and Upper grades demonstrate the most significant positive changes.
• Middle Needs Focus: The Middle grades show a concerning trend, with an increase in "Developing" and decreases in "Proficient" and "Extending." This requires further investigation and targeted support.
• Extending Growth: It's encouraging to see growth in the "Extending" category across most grade levels.