Thursday, December 25, 2014
Cabell Midland girls get important victory, Page 16 50 Cents Volume 116 Issue 51
School test scores down
By Amanda Smythers
amanda@theputnamstandard.com
Cabell County 2013-2014 WESTEST II scores dropped significantly from the previous year, with as much as a 19 percent decrease in some subject areas. The scores, which were embargoed by the West Virginia Department of Education until Dec. 5, were released at the Dec. 16 Cabell board meeting, where officials said inconsistencies between curriculum and standards as well as technical problems with the new online testing system contributed to the low scores. The Smarter Balance test, which had its maiden voyage last year, had students using an online server for testing rather than pencil and paper. This test is also adaptive, meaning questions get easier or more difficult depending on the student’s answers. Although online testing should, in theory, expedite the testing process, students and teachers struggled with hiccups throughout the testing period, the worst of which occurred on April 21. “April 21, the day that will live
“All the kids that were testing that day had to breach the form and they had to retake that test,” she said. “It got to the point where some of the kids would get kicked off, the teacher would have to call and they would have to reset the kid to start over.”
Lenora Richardson Director of Assessment & Curriculum in infamy, we have all this testing going on and the system went down,” said Lenora Richardson, director of assessment and curriculum. “First of all, they told us that it was us, and after a while they found that there was something wrong with the CTB servers. They had to replace parts.” Richardson said hundreds of students across the county were testing when the crash occurred. “All the kids that were testing that day had to breach the form See Schools, Page 4
Nichols Elementary fourth and fifth grade students performed “Christmas Round the World.”
Choir students playing Elves performed in the holiday program at Milton Middle School Thursday, Dec. 18.
Cabell students share Christmas cheer See Page 9 for more photos
Rock Branch Community Bank helps Barboursville vets By Amanda Smythers amanda@theputnamstandard.com
Susan Hager and Tammy Dixon of Rock Branch Community Bank stuff bags for residents of the Barboursville Veteran’s Home.
Rock Branch Community Bank is spreading holiday spirit with Christmas gifts and donations for the 83 residents currently staying in the Barboursville Veterans Home. For the last five years, Rock Branch has collected donations for the home, but this year wanted a little bit more of a personal touch. “Last year, we just took all the donations and I took it down there,” said Susan Hager, admin-
istrative assistant for Rock Branch Community Bank. “This year I called them and talked to them and they gave me everyone’s name. They will each get a Christmas card with their name on it and each of them will get a gift bag from us and then as well, we have tons of donations from people that we will give to the home so they can make Christmas bags as well.” Both active and retired veterans are frequent recipients of generosity from Rock Branch. Earlier in the season, the bank collected
donations from the community for Project Santa, which sends Christmas cards and gifts deployed servicemen and women. Customers could stop and fill out cards when walking in and out of the bank. In November, the bank had a special lunch for Veterans Day, complete with great food and door prizes valued up to $200. “The last two years on Veterans Day, we have done a Veterans Day luncheon. Even people who aren’t veterans appreciate it. We’ll feed See Veterans, Page 2