The Christian School of Grace Baptist Church administers the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) annually to all students in grades K through eight. Originally, this test was chosen because of the schoolís membership in Christian Schools International. This allowed our school to rate our progress compared to schools with similar goals and values. Though we no longer maintain membership in that organization, we have continued to administer the Iowa Test of Basic Skills to check our current students’ academic performance in relation to our historical performance.
The ITBS is one of the three major achievement testing programs used in America. According to an online report from Frontline, a PBS journalistic article, “Riverside Publishing controls the remaining 20 percent of the test-design market. Its Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS), a norm-referenced achievement test, is taken every year by 4 million to 5 million students.”
According to this same report, nine states have adopted the Iowa Test of Basic Skills for their achievement testing programs.
In reviewing the table which shows the Grade Equivalency scores for our classes, you are seeing the class averages based on the composite score of all students in the grade. Since we administer the tests in April, norms are based on the eighth month of the school year. For example, 1.8 equals the eighth month of First Grade. A First Grade student scoring 1.8 demonstrates they are proficient in the subjects tested (math, reading, language arts.) Any grade higher than 1.8 means that the student is achieving at a level higher than the eighth month of first grade.
These results demonstrate that students at The Christian School of Grace Baptist Church are being taught core educational skills successfully as each grade meets or exceeds the Grade Equivalency score each year. Secondly, there is a positive cumulative effect for students who remain enrolled in the school as the high seventh and eighth grade scores indicate.