School vows to find way to hold MAP tests

The Cape Girardeau School District Board of Education vowed Monday night to find a way to fund the science and social studies portions of the Missouri Assessment Program test that will no longer be financed by the state.

Superintendent Mark Bowles said that starting in the 2002-03 school year the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will only provide partial funding for the math and reading portions of the test because of budget constraints.

Assistant superintendent Cathy Evans said the district's portion of the cost for the reading and math sections will remain at $1.80 for each section and each student. The state covers the rest.

School to foot bill

For the district to give the science and social studies sections it will now cost the district between $4 and $5 for each section and each student.

Bowles said it will cost the district about $10,000, but it is something the district has to do if it wants to continue to monitor progress and update curriculum.

"We have to have that data," Bowles said, adding that "when it comes down to it the results are how we decide what we teach and how we monitor progress from year to year."

Bowles said state accreditation currently hinges on district results from all sections of the MAP, but the state is reworking its accreditation criteria to allow for the changes.

School districts throughout Missouri will have the option of paying for the extra sections or only using the reading and math portions of the test.

hkronmueller@semissourian.com

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