Wisconsin — Wisconsin Conference students in grades three through eight take the Iowa Test of Basic Skills each year to determine their level of achievement and to help us fine-tune the curriculum to better meet their needs. The student average for this school year was 67.2 percentile. To put this in perspective, this shows that our students’ average score is greater than 67.1 percent of all students taking this test nationwide.
If we average our scores over several years, our school averages are at 77.2 percentile. This means that our schools average higher than 77.1 percent of all schools in the nation. Wisconsin Conference schools are in the top 23 percent of all schools nationwide!
Looking at the natural abilities of our students, our scores look even better! Each year our students in grades four and seven are given a cognitive abilities test to determine their level of natural intelligence. Each year our students are shown to be of average mental ability, yet, for the past four years our students have obtained scores that are from .7 to 1.2 grade levels above what would be expected based on their natural abilities. Our students are working at a higher academic level than we would expect based on their levels of intelligence.
Wisconsin church school students are getting a quality academic education. While this is one of our important goals, it is not the main reason we sacrifice to provide this program. Even more important is the fact that every day when our children walk into the classroom, they will be with a teacher who will teach them about the Bible and God’s great love for them. Each day they will be encouraged to enter into a personal relationship with their Savior, Jesus Christ! That is what gives meaning to our Adventist education program!
We must always remember:
"Christian education is not expensive, it is priceless!"
Ken Kirkham, Wisconsin Conference education superintendent
