VIDALIA — After the end of summer school and LEAP retesting, 77 percent of fourth graders and 78 percent of eighth graders in Concordia Parish have met the criteria for promotion.

In real numbers, that means 183 of 235 eighth graders and 221 of 286 fourth graders met the requirements of scoring at least “approaching basic” in math and reading for the high stakes tests.

Statewide, 84 percent of fourth graders and 78 percent of eighth graders passed the tests.

In comparison, 75 percent of fourth graders and 68 percent of eighth graders in Concordia Parish passed the LEAP test in 2007.

One thing the state did differently this year is that if an eighth grader scores approaching basic in the spring testing but receives a score of unsatisfactory in the summer retesting, the earlier test score will count, Concordia Parish School District Academic Director Paul Nelson said.

“If you score approaching basic in English and unsatisfactory in math during the spring testing, and then reverse that in summer school, both of those approaching basics count,” Nelson said.

Of the 84 fourth graders retested in English, one scored mastery, 14 scored basic level, 37 scored approaching basic and 32 scored unsatisfactory.

Likewise, of the 80 fourth graders retested in math, 17 scored basic, 29 scored approaching basic and 34 scored unsatisfactory.

Of the 91 eighth graders retested in English, 18 scored basic, 61 scored approaching basic and 12 scored unsatisfactory. A total of 102 eighth grade students were retested in math, and of those 13 scored basic, 41 scored approaching basic and 48 scored unsatisfactory.

“We were really happy with the progress in fourth grade math,” Nelson said.

In the coming year, the district plans to implement FASTT math, a program by Scholastic designed to help with basic computation skills, Nelson said.

“The junior high teachers tell us the kids come in and don’t know five times five,” Nelson said. “When I was a kid, we went to the principal’s office and recited our multiplication tables. We’ve kind of gotten away from that, and this is to address those issues.”

The program will be initially implemented in the third through fifth grades, and the district hopes to expand the program to the sixth grade in the 2009-2010 school year, Nelson said.