Testing Results

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Results of standardized achievement tests administered earlier this year to third, fifth and seventh graders in Archdiocese of Chicago Catholic schools indicate that the students achieved scores above the national average for all subtests.

The TerraNova II is the standardized battery of tests used by the Archdiocese of Chicago and is aligned with the Archdiocesan curricula and the Illinois State Standards. It is published by CTB-McGraw Hill.

"Assessment plays an important role in setting standards and in innovation," says Dr. Nicholas Wolsonovich, superintendent of schools, "once again our students' performance is an indication that our curricula and instruction have set the bar high."

Catholic schools in the Archdiocese obtained an overall combined test performance for reading, language and mathematics at the 70 th percentile in the third grade, at the 74 th percentile in fifth grade and at the 76 th percentile in the seventh grade. "This means that the overall average for all Catholic schools in the Archdiocese was equal to or greater than 70 percent of third, fifth and seventh grade students nationwide," Wolsonovich disclosed.

Science and social studies achievement is also assessed by the TerraNova II tests. In these areas of study Catholic school students in the Archdiocese also exceeded national norms. Third graders scored at the 67 th percentile in science and the 69 th percentile in social studies. Fifth-grade students scored at the 66 th percentile in science and the 71 st percentile in social studies. Seventh-grade students scored in the 67 th percentile in science and the 73 rd percentile in social studies.

Test results for the Catholic schools in the city of Chicago were equally impressive with students' overall scores in reading, language and mathematics at the 62 nd percentile for third grade, the 65 th percentile for fifth grade and the 69 th percentile for seventh grade.

Students in city of Chicago Catholic schools also scored above national norms in science and social studies with third graders in the 59 th percentile in science and the 62 nd percentile in social studies; fifth graders in the 56 th percentile in science and the 61 st percentile in social studies; and seventh graders in the 59 th percentile in science and the 66 th percentile in social studies.

Students in grades three in the inner-city elementary schools who receive financial support from the Big Shoulders Fund scored near or above the national norm for all subject areas. Students in grades five and seven in the inner-city elementary schools who receive financial support from the Big Shoulders Fund also scored above national norms in the core subject areas of reading and language. Fifth grade students in this group were at the 55 th percentile and seventh-grade students were at the 60 th percentile.

Both fifth and seventh graders at schools supported by the Big Shoulders Fund scored above national norms in reading, language, and math. Third graders in this group were very close to the national norm with reading at the 47 th percentile, language at the 52 nd percentile and math at the 51 st percentile.

"For the long term, this data indicates that Catholic school students improve their performance from grade to grade," Wolsonovich pointed out. "The longer a child stays in a Catholic school," he added, "the greater his or her achievement level."

In the United States, TerraNova II tests are widely used by both public and Catholic school systems. The Archdiocese of Chicago has been administering standardized achievement tests from CTB-McGraw Hill since 1987.

There are 257 Catholic elementary and secondary schools in Cook and Lake counties with a system enrollment of 98,225 students. Elementary student attendance rate is 97% and 96% in high school, with a student-teacher ratio of 18:1. Virtually all those who graduate from Catholic elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Chicago go on to high school. Almost 100 percent of the students who enter Catholic high schools graduate and about 94 percent go on to college or university. Regardless of how students perform on national tests at the time they enter Catholic schools, they climb into the 60th, 70th, and 80th percentiles as they move through school. Information on the Archdiocese of Chicago's 217 elementary and 40 secondary schools can be found at www.archchicago.org or by calling the Office of Catholic Schools at 312-751-5200.

"Our Catholic schools constitute the best school system in Cook and Lake Counties."

- Francis Cardinal George, O.M.I., Archbishop of Chicago

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT ARCHDIOCESAN TESTING PROGRAMS >>