Students in Johns Creek Have the ‘Write Stuff’

Johns Creek elementary schools have something to cheer about this spring as they’ve demonstrated that fifth grade students have the “write” stuff. 

According to recently released results, 87 percent of all Fulton fifth-graders met or exceeded state standards on the Grade 5 Writing Assessment – an increase of four percentage points over the previous year. Fulton also is four percentage points higher than the metro area and eight percentage points higher than the state.  

In Johns Creek, , and elementary schools made 10 percent gains in the number of students in the “exceeds standards” category. Eight additional schools in Fulton also were also in this category:  Crabapple Crossing, Creek View, Gullatt, Hapeville, Hillside, Lake Windward, Mountain Park and Roswell North.

“I’m pleased to see our students continuing to score so highly on the state writing assessments,” said Superintendent Cindy Loe. “Our focus on writing at the elementary level has paid off and I believe this will translate to equally high performance for the similar writing exams that occur in middle and high school.”

Overall, 70 percent of Fulton’s elementary schools showed increases in the percent of students meeting or exceeding state standards. Three-fourths of the schools have at least 80 percent of their students meeting or exceeding standards, while last year 60 percent of the schools were in this category. Almost 50 percent of the schools have at least 90 percent of their students meeting the standard, which is 15 percentage points more than last year.

As a part of the statewide testing program, the Grade 5 Writing Assessment was administered to Fulton students in early March. The annual assessment provides fifth graders with a measurement of their writing performance. Students are assigned a topic in one of three genres – narrative, informational and persuasive – and are allowed two hours to write an essay. Papers are scored using a standardized system and rated as “Does Not Meet Standards” (scores of 100-199), “Meets Standards” (scores of 200-249) and “Exceeds Standards” (scores exceeding 250).

Results from the test help students, parents and teachers identify writing strengths as well as areas where additional focus is needed. A similar writing assessment is administered in eighth grade as well as during high school, when students take the writing section of the Georgia High School Graduation Test in their junior year.

The accompanying chart reflects five-year trends for Fulton, the metro area and the state, as well as scores for individual schools.