Seattle students return positive testing, despite statewide struggles
Sep 12, 2019, 12:18 PM
Results of statewide assessments released Tuesday show that while students in Seattle schools are outpacing Washington in key metrics, there are still continuing issues to address.
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“Stability can be a double-edged sword,” School Superintendent Chris Reykdal said in a news release. “On one hand, it means our educational system is maintaining the gains we have made. On the other, it means achievement gaps between student groups are continuing to persist.”
Combined across Washington state, less than half of all students met math standards, while approximately 60 percent met English and learning arts benchmarks. Just over 33 percent indicated high growth in math skills, and in English and language art skills from one grade to the next.
It’s a different story in the Seattle Public School District, where over 61 percent met math standards, almost 70 percent met English and language art standards, and over 39 percent experienced high growth in either subject.
Those numbers came paired with a “per-pupil expenditure” of $14,951 in Seattle. Statewide, that number was slightly lower, at $12,811 per student. A large majority of that money was devoted to staff salaries and benefits.
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Washington state’s combined school districts also had almost double the rate of students “excluded in response to a behavioral violation,” at 4.1 percent (Seattle’s was 2.1 percent).
Four-year high school graduation rates remain strong across both Seattle and Washington state, at 81.7 percent and 80.9 percent respectively.
