Hamilton County students improve on TCAP retake but few test proficient

The vast majority of Hamilton County third-graders who took the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) retake are still not clear to advance to the fourth-grade.Just 3.4 percent of the district’s nearly 800 students who took the English language arts (ELA) retake tested proficient.  That’s one of the lowest percentages in the state according to retest data released Wednesday by the Tennessee Department of Education, but the district does see positives in the data.Nearly 15 percent of Hamilton County third-graders improved from “below” proficient to “approaching” on the ELA retake and they will have an easier path to advance because of that improvement.Students who test “approaching” proficiency get to choose between summer school and fall tutoring to qualify for advancement to the fourth-grade while students who are “below” proficient must take part in both under the state’s new Third-Grade Retention Law.“As a district, we view moving from Below to Approaching, as just as important for this law as a student that moves from Approaching to Meets. Once a student reaches the Approaching category, we know they will not need to be retained – those students will either attend summer programming or participate in additional tutoring in the 4th grade. So, we wanted students to move out of the Below category and to the Approaching category,” said Hamilton County Schools in a statement.Third-graders took the initial TCAP in the spring and 60 percent failed to score proficient on the ELA portion statewide. Some of those students will qualify to be exempt from retention and others will meet special circumstances to qualify for an appeal.Districts offered the TCAP retake to give students an opportunity to avoid summer school and/or tutoring.“The TCAP retake assessment pathway provides an important opportunity for third grade students identified for potential retention to be able to retest to move directly to fourth grade, and we are proud of students who participated in the retake for exploring this pathway,” said Interim Tennessee Department of Education Commissioner Sam Pearcy. “The work and dedication of schools, districts, educators and families across the state made this opportunity possible for our students, and we are glad to see such strong participation in the first year of implementing this law.”The TCAP retake was especially helpful for students in Clay County where more than 62 percent scored proficient and in Lexington City Schools where more than 40 percent met the threshold.Memphis-Shelby County Schools saw just over 8 percent of third-graders test proficient on the retake, while Metro Nashville Public Schools saw 11 percent, and Knox County Schools posted 16 percent.Check your district's performance on the TCAP retake.