Franklin Monroe Schools receives C on state report card

0

PITSBURG — The Ohio Department of Education has released school district report cards, including those evaluating eight school districts in Darke County, and Franklin Monroe Schools received an overall grade of C.

School Report Cards are designed to give parents, communities, educators and policymakers information about the performance of districts and schools in order to celebrate success and identify areas for improvement, according to the ODE website. The information presented helps identify schools that need more intensive public support and provides data on student performance in areas such as graduation rate and college and career readiness. The goal is to ensure equitable outcomes for all of Ohio’s students.

Districts evaluated receive an overall letter grade, as well as individual grades on up to six separate components.

“I believe the final grade of C is reflective of both areas of strength to be celebrated, as well as areas to focus on for improvement,” Superintendent Jeremy Pequignot said. “We are pleased with our score on gap closing and the success our students achieved on the various state tests, as shown by our score on the performance index. We are also happy with the overall graduation rate for our students.”

The district received component grades of A and B, respectively, on graduation rate and gap closing, which measures how well the district is meeting performance expectations for vulnerable students in areas such as English language arts, math, graduation rate and English language proficiency

Other scores were more sobering, however. The Prepared for Success component measures whether a significant number of students have received training in a technical field, become prepared for work or college or are generally well-prepared for all future opportunities, according to the ODE. Franklin Monroe received a rating of D on this component. The report found that only around 40 percent of graduates earned a remediation-free score on all parts of the ACT or SAT, received an honors diploma or earned an industry-recognized credential while only about 51 percent participated in the ACT or SAT at all.

The Achievement component, meanwhile, measures how well students have performed on state tests. The district received a rating of D on this measure with fewer than 80 percent of third- and fourth-grade students passing tests in English language arts. The same grades performed significantly better in math. In addition, fewer than 80 percent of sixth graders passed tests in math and around 60 percent of eighth graders passed tests in math or English, though they performed better on science tests. Only 2.5 percent of students showed signs of chronic absenteeism.

Ohio’s Third Grade Reading Guarantee ensures that students are successful in reading before moving on to fourth grade. The ODE found that 43 third graders in the Franklin Monroe district started the year below this standard, of which only about 28 percent were able to meet the standard by the end of the year.

Finally, the district received a grade of C on Progress, which measures growth students are making based on past performance. The report showed all grades making less than the expected amount of progress in math with fourth and seventh graders, in particular, scoring poorly on all tests. High schoolers also scored poorly in math and geometry. The measure also found lackluster progress among students identified as gifted, giving the district a grade of C in that regard.

“Moving forward, we need to focus on improving the total number of indicators met by continuing to refine our instructional approaches to ensure all students are receiving the individualized attention needed to help them be successful academically,” Pequignot said. “We also need to continue our efforts to help prepare students for success beyond high school, by remaining dedicated to increasing the number of students receiving remediation-free scores on college admission testing.”

https://www.dailyadvocate.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/web1_FM-logo-WEB-11.jpg

By Tony Baker

[email protected]

The writer may be reached at 937-247-6580. To join the conversation and get updates on Facebook, search Advocate360. For more features online, go to dailyadvocate.com.

No posts to display