Students meet or exceed state math standards

Teachers and students, take a bow! You're doing exceedingly well in the classroom, and we, as parents and community members, are extremely proud.

The latest proof of your academic excellence comes from the 2001-2002 Nebraska math standards test. In that demanding test, more than 70 percent of the state's fourth, eighth and 11th graders met or exceeded the standards established by the Nebraska Department of Education.

McCook's junior high and senior high students did especially well. According to percentages released by the NDA and announced at Tuesday evening's meeting of the McCook Board of Education, 86.1 percent of McCook's eighth graders and 83.1 percent of the district's 11th graders met or exceeded the state mathematics standard.

Outstanding!

While the results are impressive, McCook educators are not surprised.

"I honestly believe we have one of the finest school systems in the state," McCook High School Principal Jerry Smith said. "Our students are extremely well prepared."

As evidence, Smith points to the ACT test which is the major measuring stick for college entrance. "Year after year, our students do very well on the ACT. And, their success comes despite the fact that 80 percent of our students take the ACT test, compared to only 30 percent in some metropolitan districts."

In regards to McCook students' proficiency in mathematics, Smith and Principal Dennis Berry of McCook Junior High tipped their hats to the junior and senior high math teachers. The school's "good basic math instruction" results from the efforts of Kristin Kudrna, Colleen Olson and John Psota in the junior high, and John Gumb, Karen Miller and and Cathy Jones in the high school.

Their teaching ranges all the way in classes from basic math to algebra, geometry, trigonometry and pre-calculus.

The range of classes poses one of the challenges in the statewide testing. "A student may be taking pre-calculus today, but on the test has to know principles from geometry taken two years ago," Smith pointed out.

The president of the McCook Board of Education, Jim Coady, discounted the fact that fourth graders in the local system tested below state standards in math. "We offer a well-rounded curriculum," Coady said, noting that the eighth and 11th grade results are a good indication the McCook students will become increasingly math proficient as they advance through the grades.

There are those who are critical of standardized, statewide testing. Among the problems is that schools start teaching for testing success, rather than preparing students for life.

But the good thing about the tests is that they are a measuring stick, providing an opportunity for the state's schools to see how they compare.

On that score, Nebraska students in general, and McCook students in particular, did an excellent job. Their outstanding performance bodes very well, not only for the students, but for the future of this state and this community as well.