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Dear APS Families,
Last week, we provided an update on our student progress data, following the Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) release of 2022-23 Virginia Assessment Results. Here are the key takeaways and reminders about the month ahead.
Academic Highlights: I was pleased to see that all student groups and grade levels demonstrated improvement and growth during the 2022-23 school year, compared to 2021-22. APS also outpaced the state’s average Standards of Learning (SOL) pass rate in nearly all areas.
- Math: Student performance increased by 4 percentage points and all student groups improved.
- Reading: In early literacy, over 90 percent of kindergarten students reached proficiency in reading—a 10% increase compared to last school year. Across other grades, scores remained consistent, with a slight increase in grade 5. End-of-year assessments showed students needing intensive support dropped three percentage points.
- Science: All student groups improved, and results show an overall 7 percentage-point Elementary science performance improved by 8 percentage points.
- Social Studies: Overall, performance improved by 7 percentage points.
While all student groups showed improvements, we are focused on secondary literacy and gaps in the performance of our Black and Hispanic students, as well as English Learners and students with disabilities in reading, math and other content areas. We also saw a 2 percent decrease in writing pass rates on the SOLs. We have expanded resources to ensure all students reach grade-level goals, including:
- Strengthening vocabulary instruction and reading comprehension
- Training teachers in structured literacy and best practices for adolescent readers/writers
- Using new diagnostic tools and literacy intervention curriculum for secondary schools
View the full presentation and our action plan in each area. Additional 2022-23 performance data is available on the VDOE website and on the School Quality Profile reports. Individual student assessment results are available in ParentVUE under the “Documents” tab.
Hispanic Heritage Month Begins September 15: On Friday, we launch the annual celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15-Oct. 15. Building prosperous and healthy communities is the theme as we honor our Latino students, staff and community members. Thank you for your partnership and have a great week.
Sincerely,
Dr. Francisco Durán
Superintendent
