New Round Of NECAP Testing Starts

You may have seen the sign outside , where the Johnston School Department is located — NECAP tests began today in local schools.

During a recent phone interview, Supt. Dr. Bernard DiLullo explained that students in grades 3 through 8 and 11 started what is scheduled to be a three-week session of testing.

Elementary students in grades 3 to 5 are beginning with reading this week and mathematics next week, with fifth-graders taking the writing tests in the third week, DiLullo said.

At Ferri Middle School, students "will be taking double sessions of testing," DiLullo explained, with math and reading tests this week and math and writing tests next week, split into morning and afternoon class periods.

The high school schedule includes writing, then reading and math, over the next two weeks.

DiLullo recently told the school committee that the district's science scores have recently shown improvement, with fourth-grade scores rising from 59 to 60 percent proficiency; eighth-grade scores reaching 27 percent from the previous level of 21; and eleventh-grade scores nearly doubling, from 12 to 21 percent.

The New England Common Assessment Program is a collaboration between Rhode Island, Vermont, and New Hampshire to align school programs with the federal No Child Left Behind law.

Find recent NECAP scores for Johnston by visitng the NECAP results web page and selecting Johnston.