Private school test scores are in, and Pillow Academy's headmaster is satisfied with his students' results.
Headmaster Termie Land said Pillow is "fine with where we are," regarding the school's scores for kindergarten through seventh grade on the Stanford Achievement Test.
While public schools evaluate students with the Mississippi Curriculum Test, many private schools use the Stanford Achievement Test, which ranks them nationally.
All Pillow Academy classes scored at least in the 69th percentile - meaning that only 31 percent of students tested nationally scored higher than Pillow's students.
The first and fifth grades scored in the 78th percentile.
"We felt like from an overall standpoint they all look good … We want to stay on track, but at the same time that's not what we're all about," Land said.
On the American College Test, Pillow students perform "hopefully well enough to earn some type of tuition or college assistance," Land said. "Year and after year we've accomplished this … We don't live and die by (Stanford Achievement Test) scores. We work on preparing students for college."
Land estimates the average ACT score of Pillow's graduating seniors is a 23 on a scale in which the top score is 36.
St. Francis Elementary School also tests its third-, fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders with the Stanford Achievement Test.
Headmaster Sister Carol Seidl would not release test results. She said average score results would not accurately reflect student ability because the school has such small classes, with around 12 to 15 children in each. Some students perform better than others, so an average score would be skewed, she said.
Carroll Academy could not be reached for information about its students' scores.
