State exam test scores soar in northeast Queens school districts

By Naeisha Rose

School Districts 26 and 25 in northeast Queens had some of the city’s highest test scores for third to eighth graders in proficiency exams in Mathematics and English Language Arts for the 2016-2017 school year, according to the state’s Dept. of Education.

The proficiency exams are graded on a one to four scale, according to Jonathan Burman, a spokesman for the state’s Education Department. A score of four indicates a student excels at a subject, three indicates a student is proficient in the math or English, a two shows partial proficiency and a one depicts partial proficiency, according to the department’s rules.

District 26, which covers Bayside, Little Neck, Glen Oaks, Bellerose and parts of Auburndale and Fresh Meadows, had 43.4 percent of the top scorers in level-4 math, and had 32.8 percent of students with level-4 English scores, which is the second-highest across the city, according to DOE.

“District 26 in northeast Queens has long been the city’s highest achieving district,” according to insideschools.com, a school advocacy site that monitors the performance of city schools. “Its cozy neighborhood schools have veteran teachers, plenty of books and supplies, and parents who put a premium on good education.”

It was out in level-4 English scores by Manhattan’s District 2 schools, which had 35 percent of test takers getting the top grade, according to the DOE.

District 25 was in fourth place in level-4 math proficiency with 32.7 percent of students, according to the education department. This district covers Flushing, Whitestone, College Point and Beechhurst.

“The district has many well-regarded neighborhood schools,” according to insideschools.com. “There are several gifted and talented programs and three early childhood schools that admit students in grades k to 3 from across the district.”

Test scores across New York State district schools showed an uptick in performance from the previous year overall.

Proficiency in English in the city increased by 2.6 percent to 40.6 percent of students this year from 38 percent last year, according to the Deparment of Education.

City students became more proficient in math by 1.4 percent in 2016-2017 to 37.8 percent from 36.4 percent in 2015-2016, according the department’s data.

“We continue to steadily head in the right direction,” said state Education Commissioner Mary Ellen Elia.

Reach reporter Naeisha Rose by e-mail at nrose@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4573.