How Safety Harbor Third-Graders Did on the FCAT

Safety Harbor's third-graders outpaced Pinellas County as a whole in the FCAT for reading and writing, according to results released Friday.

More than half of Pinellas County's third-graders read at or above grade level – at 56 percent. Only 48 percent of the district's third-graders scored at or above grade level on the math portion of the FCAT.

The reading results overall place Pinellas third-graders on pace with their peers across Florida. They were 10 points behind Florida third-graders in math.

Safety Harbor Moves Ahead

But Safety Harbor's third-graders turned in a higher performance. The elementary school was among more than a dozen schools in Pinellas County that posted double digit gains in reading over 2012. Safety Harbor had a 17 percent increase.

It was among eight schools with gains in math, with a 24 percentage point increase over 2012.

Here is the percentage of Safety Harbor third-graders at or above grade level in reading and math:

• Safety Harbor Elementary School: 72 percent reading; 66 percent math.

Scores on the third-grade FCAT are numbered from 1 to 5, with 3 the minimum for students to be considered at grade level.

Students who score "1" are at risk of being held back.

In Pinellas schools:

• 17 percent scored a "1" in reading;
• 24 percent scored a "1" in math.

Florida’s passage rates have dropped after exams were changed and a more rigorous scoring system implemented.

Teacher evaluations are partially based on students’ FCAT scores.

School letter grades are set to be released in July,

Students’ individual FCAT results will be distributed to parents by schools later.

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