The latest results show both progress and setbacks as some schools made big improvements, while others struggled to keep up.
And though ELA scores dropped slightly, Math scores saw an improvement.
Thus, let’s take a closer look at the numbers and see which schools are doing well and which ones need more support.
- West NY students’ grades in ELA dropped slightly, while Math scores improved, with Cattaraugus County seeing a 5.3% increase in proficiency.
- Ellicottville Middle School High School had the best ELA scores in Cattaraugus (67% passing), while East View Elementary had the lowest (20%).
- Chautauqua County’s overall performance was below the state average, with only 36.2% passing ELA and 39.4% passing Math.
Cattaraugus County ELA Performance
Let’s start by looking at how students in Cattaraugus County performed in English Language Arts (ELA) in the 2022-23 school year.
A total of 3,980 students took the ELA test, and according to the New York State Education Department, 30.3% met expectations, while another 12.3% exceeded expectations.
This brings the total proficiency rate to 42.6%, but unfortunately, this represents a small decline of 0.6% from the previous school year.
Now, if we take a closer look at school-by-school performance, Ellicottville Middle School High School stood out as the best performer, with an impressive 67% of students reaching proficiency.
On the other hand, East View Elementary School had the weakest results, with only 20% of students passing the ELA test.
Other schools showed mixed results.
Portville Junior-Senior High School had 45% of students meeting ELA expectations and another 20% exceeding them, while Randolph Senior High School followed closely with 44% meeting expectations and 17% exceeding them.
At Portville Elementary School, 37% of students met the ELA standards, and 22% exceeded them.
Meanwhile, Ellicottville Elementary School had 38% meeting expectations and 16% exceeding them.
At the lower end, some schools struggled significantly.
Cattaraugus-Little Valley Middle School had only 26% of students meeting expectations and just 5% exceeding them.
Olean Intermediate-Middle School recorded 21% meeting expectations and 5% exceeding them.
And East View Elementary School had the lowest scores, with only 15% meeting expectations and 5% exceeding them.
Cattaraugus County Math Performance
While ELA results showed a small decline, Mathematics scores in Cattaraugus County tell a different story.
A total of 7,177 students took the Math test, and 34.9% met expectations, while 13.4% did even better.
That means 48.3% of students reached proficiency, a strong 5.3% increase from the previous school year.
This improvement in Math is an encouraging sign for the county’s education system.
Looking at individual schools, Ellicottville Elementary School had the strongest Math results, with an impressive 77% of students considered proficient.
However, East View Elementary School had the lowest Math performance, just like in ELA, with only 20% of students passing.
There are also other schools that performed well.
Ellicottville Middle School High School had 48% of students meeting expectations and 24% exceeding them.
Allegany-Limestone Elementary School saw 50% meeting expectations and 20% exceeding them.
Portville Junior-Senior High School had 53% meeting expectations and 15% exceeding them.
However, on the lower end, some schools had difficulty.
Olean Senior High School had just 14% of students meeting expectations and 13% exceeding them.
East View Elementary School continued to struggle, with only 15% meeting expectations and 5% exceeding them.
Chautauqua County ELA Performance
Now, let’s shift our focus to Chautauqua County and examine how students performed in ELA.
A total of 6,819 students took the ELA test.
Of these, 26% met expectations, while 10.2% exceeded them.
This resulted in an overall proficiency rate of 36.2%, which unfortunately represents a 1.9% decline from the previous school year.
Among individual schools, Forestville Central High School was the highest performer in ELA, with 62% of students reaching proficiency.
However, Pine Valley Elementary School had the weakest results, with only 16% of students passing the test.
Other notable ELA performances included Southwestern Middle School, where 38% of students met expectations and 18% exceeded them.
Maple Grove Junior/Senior High School also performed well, with 41% meeting expectations and 15% exceeding them.
Panama High School’s results were interesting: 29% met expectations, and a strong 26% exceeded them.
Then you have the schools that struggled.
Cassadaga Valley Middle/High School had just 22% meeting expectations and 14% exceeding them.
Persell Middle School recorded 24% meeting expectations and 11% exceeding them.
Samuel G. Love Elementary School had only 19% meeting expectations and 9% exceeding them.
Milton J. Fletcher Elementary School had the lowest results, with just 15% meeting expectations and 3% exceeding them.
Chautauqua County Math Performance
When it comes to Math, Chautauqua County saw much better results.
A total of 13,434 students in the county took the Math test.
Among them, 29.6% met expectations, and 9.8% exceeded them, bringing the total proficiency rate to 39.4%.
This is a notable 7.1% increase from the previous school year, one of the strongest areas of improvement.
The top-performing school in Math was Chautauqua Lake Elementary School, where 75% of students reached proficiency.
And it was Pine Valley Elementary School that had the lowest Math results, with only 16% passing the test.
Other schools had a good year with math.
Panama K-6 School saw 46% of students meeting expectations and 16% exceeding them.
Bemus Point Elementary School had 50% meeting expectations and 11% exceeding them.
Forestville Central High School had 53% meeting expectations and 9% exceeding them.
But some schools had a harder time.
Brocton Middle High School had only 30% meeting expectations and just 1% exceeding them.
Sinclairville Elementary School had 25% meeting expectations and 5% exceeding them.
Pine Valley Elementary School had the weakest Math performance, with just 12% meeting expectations and 4% exceeding them.
How Do Cattaraugus and Chautauqua Counties Stack Up?
Now, if we zoom out and compare these two counties to the state average, how do they compare?
New York State as a whole had an ELA proficiency rate of 48% and a Math proficiency rate of 49.6%, meaning that Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties fell below the state average.
Cattaraugus County was close to the state’s Math average of 48.3%, but its ELA score of 42.6% was lower than its 48%.
Chautauqua County had a tougher time, with a 36.2% proficiency rate in ELA and 39.4% in Math.
That being said, New York still ranks as one of the best states for education.
A recent study by Scholaroo ranked New York’s education system as the second-best in the nation for school quality.
The state also spends more per student than any other state, allocating $33,440 per student per year, totaling a massive $84.7 billion in education funding statewide.
What’s Next for Education in Western New York?
Now that we’ve reviewed all the numbers let’s take a step back and consider the following: Math scores are improving, which is great news, but ELA scores are slipping, and that’s a problem.
Students need strong reading and writing skills for lifelong success, so why is literacy falling behind while Math improves?
Schools like East View Elementary and Pine Valley Elementary are struggling in both subjects, meaning they need urgent attention.
New York spends more per student than any other state, but are those funds reaching the students who need them most?
If schools can take the lessons learned from the Math improvements and apply similar strategies to ELA, we might see scores climb in both subjects.
The bottom line is that there’s progress but also work to do. Math scores are headed in the right direction, but literacy needs serious attention.
