"Alaska Measures of Progress"

Sitka’s school district is performing above the state average based on the latest test scores — but the numbers are not necessarily something to brag about. Instead, Sitka’s educators hope the new test results help them focus their efforts on under-performing populations in the schools.

According to a university news release, the cable had been accidentally severed somewhere just off-campus in the city of Lawrence. Internet, online classes, even email was unavailable to the majority of campus for the rest of the afternoon.

“I believe there are some things around the board’s new strategic plan. … We’ve begun to put some meat on that, and I assume they’ve got somebody else in mind that they would like to help lead in that direction,” the outgoing commissioner said.

The Alaska Measures of Progress exam started to get a bad rap months after it appeared in schools last spring. Rep. Jim Colver, R-Palmer, has pre-filed a bill to do away with the exam.

The Alaska Measures of Progress test has been met with disappointment by some school district superintendents, lawmakers, and even the state’s Department of Education.

Skagway is the only school district in the state in which more than 50 percent of students were proficient in math.

About 40 percent of Juneau students that were tested meet the standards, while roughly 60 percent partially meet the standards. That’s better than how the state did as a whole.

“I’m not happy. I’m not satisfied with the way the data was rolled out,” said Education Commissioner Mike Hanley.

Education Commissioner Mike Hanley said that although the results show room for improvement, they also show that the education department has raised the bar to make the tests more difficult.

School districts across the state are waiting on standardized test scores that were scheduled for release in early October. Third through 10th graders took the Alaska Measures of Progress tests for the first time last spring.