Provided by Prince William County Schools (PWCS)
Prince William County Schools (PWCS) have achieved 100 percent accreditation. According to a Sept. 27 report from the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE), all PWCS schools earned Virginia accreditation based on recent performance measures. The 100 percent success rate compares with a statewide accreditation rate of 92 percent. Last year, 94 percent of schools in PWCS were accredited.
“Our students, teachers, support staff and school leaders can be proud of the hard work they have done to improve academic achievement,” said Dr. Steve Walts, Superintendent of Schools. “Past results allowed us to direct additional educational efforts to the schools and subjects where they were needed most, and that has benefited student learning.”
The latest results reflect VDOE’s recently updated and expanded accountability standards. They now measure performance on multiple school-quality indicators, not just student achievement on Standards of Learning (SOL) tests.
“The change provides a much more comprehensive view of school quality and student progress,” Walts said. “Now, it shows where students have reached the goal of subject proficiency, and reveals which schools are helping students to make significant progress. It rewards solid success in teaching and learning no matter where students started out.”
Elementary and middle schools are evaluated on:
- Overall proficiency and growth in English reading/writing achievement (including progress of English learners toward English-language proficiency);
- Overall proficiency and growth in mathematics;
- Overall proficiency in science;
- English achievement gaps among student groups;
- Mathematics achievement gaps among student groups; and
- Absenteeism.
High schools are evaluated based on:
- Overall proficiency in English reading/writing and progress of English learners toward English-language proficiency;
- Overall proficiency in mathematics;
- Overall proficiency in science;
- English achievement gaps among student groups;
- Mathematics achievement gaps among student groups;
- Graduation and Completion Index;
- Dropout rate; and
- Absenteeism.
