Alpharetta-Milton Students Best Fulton Averages in Writing

Once again, Fulton County students are excelling on state assessments as shown by recent results on the Grade 8 Writing Assessment. Alpharetta and Milton students are doing even better than the county's averages, leaving local school principals pleased, but not too surprised.

The Fulton average is 91 percent, four points higher than the metro area average and nine percentage points higher than the state, according to information from the Fulton County School System. But the local schools have between 94 and 98 percent of students meeting or exceeding standards.

By raising scores nine points, Fulton Science Academy Middle School has met one of its three school improvement goals for the year, its principal said via email today.

"We applied some new strategies to improve our students’ writing skills and we are happy to see that met our goal in writing," Principal Kenan Sener said.

 "I think that the results in writing this year is a product of our focus on this area across the curriculum, coming up with good strategies to improve and applying them well," said the principal of the school on Hembree Road school.

The school's teachers use creative methods to engage students in learning the different forms of writing, Sener said, including critiquing, contests, reading aloud and online assessments.

"Today’s generation uses different forms of ‘shortcut’ writing tools like texting, online chatting and online social media. In most cases, students use online shortcuts and slang which does not help their writing skills," Sener said. "Therefore, helping students with formal writing skills becomes even more important. It means a lot to us that 98 percent of our students met and exceeded the standards"

Hopewell Middle School on Cogburn Road in Milton has scores that are 9 percent higher than 2007. Even four years ago the school exceeded state averages.

"Our percentage of 'meets and exceeds' has increased from 85 percent in 2007 to 93 percent in 2009; the last two years it has been 94 percent.," said Principal Dru Tomlin.

Tomlin said the school's Language Arts teachers have emphasized teaching writing skills and staff development activities over the past three years with the focus on improving writing skills.

Despite having 94 percent meeting or exceeding the writing assessment standards, "Teachers are actually disappointed that the percentage did not increase this year and it will continue to be a skill that we will emphasize," Tomlin said.

 And on Birmingham Highway at Northwestern Middle School, Principal Bruce Fraser and his staff are pleased with the scores also.

"It is a testament to the support provided by the entire [Northwestern Middle School] community. The students take testing seriously and were very focused.," Fraser said.

"Immediately following testing, I was stopped in the hall at least a dozen times by students who shared that they felt I would be 'proud' or 'happy with their results,'" he said. 

Northwestern Middle School implemented a school wide writing initiative a few years ago, with teachers from each content area holding the students to a high standard with respect to written responses. Those basic expectations are posted in every classroom to remind students that regardless of content area, they are to focus on specific writing strategies.

A practice writing assessment in all grade levels is used by teachers to focus their instruction. Writing samples are analyzed to suggest areas of improvement.

"Simply put, the students were right. I am 'happy' with the results and very 'proud' of them," Fraser said.

Students were tested in January and had to write a composition on an assigned topic.