Philly Schools' State Exam Results Show Improvements, Concerns

PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania System of School Assessment and Keystone Exam results from students in the School District of Philadelphia in 2018-2019 are a bit of a double-edged sword, as results show progress but also areas of concern, the district said.

Long-term trends are moving in the right direction on the PSSA, with more students scoring proficient and advanced, and fewer scoring below basic, across all tested subject areas.

In the subject of English/Language Arts (ELA) 3,135 fewer students in grades 3-8 are scoring below basic as compared to 2014-2015. In addition, 36 percent of students scored proficient or advanced in 2018-2019, up one percentage point from the previous school year and up four percentage points from 2014-2015.

However, in 2018-2019, 32.5 percent of third grade students scored proficient or advanced in English/Language Arts, compared to 35.7 percent of third grade students in 2017-2018.

In addition, the percentage of students in grades 3-8 scoring proficient or advanced in Math has increased steadily since 2014-2015. Data from 2018-2019 shows that 22 percent of students scored proficient or advanced, up five percentage points from 2014-2015 and up two percentage points from 2017-2018. The District is hopeful that this number will increase with planned improvements to the current Math curriculum that will help to build a stronger foundation for teaching and learning.

PSSA Science scores are also up from previous years: 40 percent of 4th and 8th grade students scored proficient or advanced in 2018-2019, the highest level since 2014-2015. Last year, 35 percent scored proficient or advanced.

Scores on the Keystone Exams, taken by students in grades 8-11, remain mixed, while also showing areas for improvement.

In Biology, 28 percent of students scored proficient or advanced, which is a five percentage point increase from 2014-2015, but one percentage point less than 2017-2018. In Algebra I last year, 20 percent of students scored proficient or advanced -- the same as 2014-2015 and two percentage points fewer than in 2017-2018. And in Literature, 41 percent of all students scored proficient or advanced last school year, compared to 42 percent in 2017-2018 and 44 percent in 2014-2015.

To help augment high school supports, the district will be implementing a High School Plan which will enable alignment in funding, human resources and materials to strengthen the academic experience of students in grades 6-12. The plan will improve instructional rigor and relevance of content, increase students’ engagement in their learning, and develop systems to provide additional social and emotional support to students. This comes after the District expanded its Office of High School Supports, led by a Deputy Chief of High School Strategy, in 2018-2019.

District PSSA and Keystone results and open data files are available online here.