MANSFIELD — It’s that time of year again. The state Department of Education (ODE) has released its annual Ohio School Report Cards.
These report cards evaluate districts and individual schools using standardized test scores, attendance rates and other data from K-12 educational institutions.
Districts and schools receive several scores, including an overall rating, on a one- to five-star scale.
One star means a district needs significant support to meet state standards. Three stars means a district has met expectations. Five stars means a district has significantly exceeded expectations.
This year, all nine of Richland County’s traditional public school districts received at least three stars overall, though several scored below state standards in the early literacy metric.
How do school grade cards work?
Ohio School Report Cards currently measure six components, though only five receive star ratings and factor into a school or district’s overall rating. The College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness component is solely informational.
The component scores that contribute to an overall rating are weighted differently, according to Mansfield City’s Chief Academic Officer Stephen Rizzo.
Districts get 28.6 percent of their total score from achievement, 28.6 percent from progress and 14.3 percent each from the graduation, early literacy and gap closing components.
Individual schools are also scored, but may not include all components. For example, elementary schools do not have a graduation score and high schools do not have an early literacy score.
Local administrators are quick to point out that Ohio School Report Cards don’t tell the whole story of a school district.
“It’s good to look at that data, but there’s a lot of data we look at that’s more important to us,” said Supt. Keith Strickler of Ontario. “We really focus on the growth of each kid. We don’t get hung up on a checkmark.”
Supt. Michael Browning of Shelby said the state report card is just one measure of a student’s experience.
“Just this week we held a Fitness Challenge for Pre-Kindergarten through 8th-grade students. This was a great event that had parents involved and students coming to school,” he said.
“When students come to school, they will be more successful in their classes. More success equals a better report card. But it all starts with students who want to come to school. We as a district are giving them a reason to want to come to school.”
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What are the Ohio school grade card components?
Achievement represents whether student performance on state tests met established thresholds and how well students performed on tests overall.
Progress looks closely at the growth all students are making based on their past performances.
Gap Closing is a measure of the reduction in educational gaps for student subgroups.
Graduation is a measure of the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate and the five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate.
Early Literacy is a measure of reading improvement and proficiency for students in kindergarten through third grade.
How did my school district do in its report card?
Clear Fork Valley Local Schools
Clear Fork Valley Local Schools received an overall rating of 3.5 stars, with two stars in progress, three in achievement and four in gap closing, graduation and early literacy.
Crestview Local Schools
Crestview Local Schools received an overall rating of three stars, including one in progress, three in achievement and early literacy and four in gap closing and graduation.
Lexington Local Schools
Lexington Local Schools received an overall rating of four stars, with two stars in progress, four stars in achievement and early literacy and five stars in gap closing and graduation.
Supt. Jeremy Secrist praised students and staff for their hard work.
“Central, Western and Eastern Elementary each achieved a five-star rating,” Secrist said. “It is encouraging to see that our youngest learners are rebounding from COVID thanks to the amazing work of our teachers.”
“As we continue to recover from the last three years, we will continue to focus on utilizing data to improve instruction and student performance. We are pleased with our recovery, but not yet satisfied. Our students can continue to grow and improve, and we will be supporting those efforts.”
Lucas Local Schools
Lucas Local Schools received an overall rating of four stars, with three stars in progress and early literacy and four stars in achievement, gap closing and graduation.
Supt. Brad Herman said he is pleased with the results, which are a testament to the hard work of Lucas staff, families and the community.
“The scores were expected based on the data that we consistently monitor,” he said. “We are proud of our students for being successful in the classroom and all endeavors.
“While we are seeing continued student success, we are always looking to enhance the educational experience for all our students.”
Madison Local Schools
Madison Local Schools received an overall rating of 3.5 stars, with two stars in early literacy, three stars in achievement and progress, four stars in gap closing and five stars in graduation.
Supt. Rob Peterson said the grade card reflects the collaboration and hard work between students, families, teaching and non-teaching staff and administrators.
“We are particularly proud of our five-star rating in the graduation rate component, where we significantly exceeded the state standard,” Peterson said.
“We believe the graduation rate component is a reflection of the education a child receives at Madison from preschool through graduation. Our staff and administration do a great job with all students at all levels, supporting them academically as well as socially and emotionally.”
Peterson said the district demonstrated some improvement from last year in its early literacy component, but it remains an ongoing area of focus for teachers and administrators.
He also pointed out that the grade card is a valuable, but limited, tool for evaluating a school system.
“While the report card is an important measure, there is so much more that goes into a child’s education than what appears on the report card,” he said.
“I am extremely proud of our staff and administration, and the extra time and energy that they put in to support our students and help them be successful inside and outside of the classroom.”
Mansfield City Schools
Mansfield City Schools received an overall rating of three stars, with one star in early literacy, two stars in achievement and graduation, three stars in progress and four stars in gap closing.
Chief Academic Officer Stephen Rizzo said the overall three-star rating is a reflection of school staff, students and families working together.
Rizzo said the district has spent a lot of time over the last few years ensuring it has high quality instructional material for early literacy and training for teachers. The district has also used federally-funded student support specialists to work with kids who need extra support.
“Our literacy block is being revamped and we are seeing some progress and it will take time,” he said. “Our elementary staff have been working really hard on reading.”
The district began using iReady assessments last year. iReady also comes with virtual learning tools students can use if they need extra help.
“There is no replacement for a good teacher, but we are trying to target the use of computers aligned with that data tool,” Rizzo said.
The district is also implementing a new phonics tool and iReady dyslexia screening.
Rizzo said one of the reasons early literacy remains a challenge is that fewer students are entering kindergarten with the skills they need to thrive.
At the beginner of each school year, children take a state readiness assessment. Rizzo said prior to the pandemic, about half of Mansfield kindergarteners had scores that implied they weren’t ready for kindergarten. Now it’s more than 70 percent.
“Kids who did not go to preschool during the pandemic, that is significant,” Rizzo said. “When we look at where students are starting in the last couple of years coming into kindergarten, we see many that are not ready to take on kindergarten learning.”
Mansfield City Schools reconfigured its grades and building structure last year in part to expand its preschool at Sherman Elementary. The preschool currently has a five star Step Up to Quality Rating, the highest available.
Andrea Moyer, director of school improvement, said she regularly meets with principals and building leadership teams.
“That seems to be where we can get staff talking about teaching strategies, looking at the data and then coming up with ways to help our kids,” she said.
Supt. Stan Jefferson said teachers and administrators continue to look for innovative and evidence-based practices for boosting student achievement.
“We are not finished. Our story is not finished,” he said. “The bar is continuing to move, so we’ve got to get back to work.”
Ontario Local Schools
Ontario Local Schools received an overall rating of four stars, including three in progress and early literacy, four in achievement and five in gap closing and graduation.
Supt. Keith Strickler said he was pleased with the results but not surprised, since Ontario does frequent testing throughout the year.
“By the time a kid takes the state test at the end of the year, we know how they’re going to do because we’ve been testing them all year,” he said.
He also said Ontario’s ultimate priority is growth for every student at every level — even if that undermines the district’s grade card.
Strickler said about 26 fifth graders didn’t take fifth-grade exams because they’re enrolled in sixth grade classes.
“If all we cared about was trying to get a check mark, we would never do that,” he said. “We look at every kid and how can we move every kid (up). We don’t just teach to the middle.
“I have some kids, they’re getting five high school credits in the 8th grade.”
At the same time, Strickler said all student growth is worth celebrating, including students who are still testing below grade level.
“The kids know that we believe they can grow,” he said. “When they know that we believe that, they start to believe it too.”
Plymouth-Shiloh Local Schools
Plymouth-Shiloh Local Schools received an overall rating of four stars, including two stars for early literacy, three stars for achievement, four stars for progress and gap closing and five stars for graduation.
Supt. Brad Turson said students in Plymouth and Shiloh are able to thrive because teachers and support staff continue to prioritize student safety and well-being.
“With the outstanding work done in this area our students are able to grow and experience success academically throughout the school year,” he said.
“We have identified areas in which we can continue to improve and grow from the available data and have initiated plans to help with this continuous improvement. The district would like to thank our community for their continued support as we move forward to best serve our students.”
Shelby City Schools
Shelby City Schools received an overall rating of four stars, including two for early literacy, three for graduation, four for achievement and progress and five for gap closing.
“I am very proud of the work that was done before me and the continuing work of the principals and teachers as they look for ways to continue this momentum,” said Supt. Michael Browning, whose career at Shelby began this fall.
“We are certainly happy with an overall rating of four stars, but our staff have taken it upon themselves to not settle and to continue to grow.”
Browning said boosting early literacy skills and graduation rates are goals for the district.
“If we can get our younger students to read and comprehend what they are reading we will see, over time, that this skill will do more to help educate the child than anything else,” he said.
Browning said he was particularly pleased to see Shelby Middle School’s five-star rating.
“Those are tough years for students, so for them to be motivated and work hard on the tests is a testament to the staff for properly preparing the students and keeping their focus during the year,” he said.