6 out of 7 Oak Ridge schools earn an "A" under new grading system
Tennessee has released letter grades for every public K-12 school in the state and Oak Ridge Schools received an A at six of the seven schools graded, making those schools among the highest rated ones in the state.
While Woodland Elementary School's student achievement numbers outperformed the state average in every area, the school received a C letter grade overall due to the weight applied to student growth in the equation, according to information from the city school system.
Three schools earned perfect Level 5 scores in every scored component contributing to the overall grade, the Oak Ridge Schools news release stated. Oak Ridge Preschool is not eligible for a school letter grade because it does not serve students in grades that participate in state assessments.
“It is nearly impossible to capture the success of a school and the incredibly intricate and multifaceted work of its educators with a single letter grade, but I am thrilled to see tireless work of our students, teachers and staff positively recognized in these outstanding letter grades,” Oak Ridge Schools Superintendent Bruce Borchers is quoted as saying in the release. “Over the last several years our schools have reached amazing new heights and I am excited to have an opportunity to shine a light on their success once again.”
Every Oak Ridge school earned a Level 5 in student achievement, the highest possible score, as a result of the district’s Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) test results. During testing last spring, Oak Ridge Schools outperformed the state average, collectively, by more than 13 percentage points. In the new grading system, student achievement is weighted equally to student growth, and is an area the district plans to target as an opportunity for improvement moving forward.
“As with any assessment, we will use these letter grades as an opportunity to celebrate the good work happening in our schools and identify areas where we can continue to improve and positively impact student achievement,” Borchers stated. “While our student achievement numbers remain ahead of the state averages, we will continue to use data from our predictive assessments throughout the year to implement impactful learning strategies in the classroom and remain diligent in doing what’s best for our students.”
Scores are calculated based on a school’s achievement - determined by TCAP test results; growth - determined by Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) test results, and in the case of high school, college and career readiness. Each of these areas is weighted to determine its contribution towards the overall letter, the release stated. Additionally, growth is represented in two ways: growth achieved by the overall student population, and Growth25, the growth achieved by the lowest 25% of student performers.
“While we are happy that our student achievement has remained high, we recognized the need to improve our student growth and began implementing new ways of using data from our predictive assessments to make informed decisions that guide our work while providing individualized support and instruction whenever possible,” said Woodland Principal DT Hobby. “Because this year’s score is based on last year’s data, we have already seen improvement from the changes we have made this year and are looking forward to seeing our growth at the end of the year. As always, we will continue to implement impactful learning strategies in the classroom and will remain diligent in doing what’s best for our students.”
Across the state
More than a quarter of Tennessee's public K-12 schools could face corrective action and audits from the state after receiving Ds or Fs under the new grading system.
Tennessee released letter grades for every public K-12 school in the state on Thursday, putting a law first passed in 2016 into effect. The grades were long delayed by technical issues with testing and disruptions during the coronavirus pandemic.
The grading system's advocates say letter grades are a simpler, more transparent way for parents to understand school performance.
Opponents say the new system unfairly favors proficiency on standardized tests, instead of overall academic growth from year to year, making it harder for schools to earn As or Bs. Some have raised concerns that the grades will further stigmatize public schools, and others have pointed to the underfunding of those schools.
"School letter grades will provide Tennessee families with a clear rating system that gives them a snapshot of how their child’s school is performing," Tennessee Education Commissioner Lizzette Reynolds said in a news release. "No matter what your school’s letter grade is, everyone can play a role in supporting the success of our students and the success of our schools by engaging with your local school communities and joining the conversation."
Tanya T. Coats, an educator from Knox County who heads the Tennessee Education Association, said the state already had an easy-to-understand, comprehensive report card system that accounted for things like absenteeism, graduation rates and college and career readiness - things not reflected well by letter grades. She pointed to how letter grades have caused harm in other states and called for Tennessee to repeal or heavily amend its newly effective law.
"It is insulting to students, parents, educators and communities to label our schools with a single letter grade weighted heavily on a flawed high-stakes standardized test," Coats said in the statement Thursday, shortly after the public release of the grades. "It is impossible to capture the hard work of Tennessee students and educators with such a simplistic rating."
Schools that receive a D or F must appear before the State Board of Education and may be required to follow a corrective plan or even face academic and financial audits. Nearly half of the schools that received Fs are within the Memphis-Shelby County Schools district. The remaining letter grades were largely scattered across the rest of the state.
How it works: Tennessee officials map out school A-F letter grade plan, state board members voice concern
Here's how letter grades broke down statewide, according to data released by the Tennessee Department of Education:
A: 294 schools (17.4%)
B: 441 schools (26.09%)
C: 513 schools (30.36%)
D: 350 schools (20.71%)
F: 92 schools (5.44%)
An additional 210 schools did not receive a letter grade due to "data suppression and business rules," according to the education department. For example, some public school programs geared toward adult learners would not be given a letter grade, a department official told The Tennessean. In total, Tennessee has around 1,700 public K-12 schools eligible for letter grades, according to department data.
The new grading system weights achievement and growth scores, which measure year-over-year academic progress for students. High schools have an additional weight added for college and career readiness indicators, like SAT and ACT scores.
Find out what letter grade individual schools received
Curious about what letter grade a specific school earned? Visit reportcard.tnedu.gov, select the "letter grades" tab across the top enter the name of the school in the search bar to look it up.
A downloadable dataset for the entire state is also available at tn.gov/education/districts/federal-programs-and-oversight/data/data-downloads. Scroll down to the "additional data" section and select the "school letter grade" drop down menu to access it.
In August and September, the state education department hosted a series of town halls and small group conversations open to the public, along with opportunities to engage on social media and submit written comments. The goal was to discuss the best way to measure school performance and to create transparency around what the new letter grades mean.
From August: Tennessee schools to receive A-F letter grades this fall, leaders seek public input
A series of 10 town hall meetings were hosted in Dickson, Greeneville, Bartlett, Memphis, Dyersburg, Chattanooga, Knoxville, Cookeville, Nashville and Shelbyville from mid-August to early September. Public comment submissions also drew around 300 responses.
Recordings of the town hall meetings, along with more information on the new letter grades, can be found at tn.gov/education/SchoolLetterGrades.
Contributing to this story was reporter Rachel Wegner at RAwegner@tennessean.com. Find her on Twitter, Threads and Bluesky @RachelAnnWegner.
Learn more
The state education department provided a fact sheet and FAQ on school letter grades. See it for yourself below.
https://www.scribd.com/document/694087788/A-F-letter-grade-FAQ-and-info-sheet
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 6 out of 7 Oak Ridge schools earn an "A" under new grading system
