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North Carolina School Report Cards Released – Watauga County Schools Continue to Exceed Most of the State

Oct. 26, 2012. The North Carolina “School Report Cards” for the 2011-12 school year have been released by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.  The results show that student achievement in the Watauga County Schools continues to exceed that of most NC school systems as measured by the state’s end-of-grade and end-of-course tests.

While WCS test results were released in August as part of this year’s report from the State Board of Education about the NC ABCs school accountability model, the School Report Cards also include statewide results that allow for comparison of local and statewide performance.  In addition to test results, School Report Cards provide information about teacher qualifications, average class sizes, school safety, and other factors at each school.  

A “snapshot” summary of the School Report Card for each school will be available on each school’s website and a printed copy will be provided on request.  The individual school websites can be accessed under the “Schools” heading on the WCS website (www.watauga.k12.nc.us).    

The School Report Cards show that 82.1% of WCS students in grades 3-8 scored at or above grade level proficiency on the end-of-grade tests in reading compared to 71.2% statewide.  In math, 89.7% of WCS students in grades 3-8 scored at or above grade level proficiency compared to 82.8% statewide.  In the fifth grade science test, 83.2% of WCS students scored at or above proficiency versus 75.9% of students statewide.  For the eighth grade science test, 85.6% of WCS students scored at or above proficiency compared to 77.3% statewide. 

Close to 90% of Watauga High School achieved proficiency on the state’s end-of-course tests in English I and Biology, exceeding statewide averages in both subjects.  The high school’s students fell slightly short of the state average in Algebra I, with 75.1% of results rated proficient or higher compared to 78.7% statewide. 

The average Watauga High School SAT score of 1081 (critical reading and mathematics combined) was significantly above the state average of 997.  Including the writing component of the SAT, the average score at Watauga High School was 1587, 118 points better than the NC average of 1469. The high school’s on-time graduation rate was 85.4% for 2011-12 and the statewide rate was 80.4%. 

School Report Card results for schools across the state are available online at www.ncreportcards.org.  A link to this information is posted on the news and data page of the WCS website.