Today we are pleased to release the 2022 report cards for NWA and Pulaski County schools. These report cards provide an easy-to-understand overview of how students in the area schools performed in the 2021-22 school year.
The report cards are in a ‘dashboard’ format that makes it easy for educators, school administrators, parents, and policymakers to see how school districts and charter schools are performing. Performance on key measures is broken down by Elementary, Middle, and High School levels and compared to regional and state scores. For large districts, the report cards also include individual school data, where percentile ranks make the achievement and growth scores easy to interpret.
The Report Cards put district-level information about academic growth, academic achievement, and school quality into a one-page context for quick interpretation. The performance data used in the report card are from the 2021-22 school year, and the most recent data available at this time.
These key metrics of school performance are reported by the ADE at the school level in ESSA reports, but we feel they are important to consider from a district level to examine how effectively the school system as a whole is educating students, particularly compared to other districts in the same geographic areas. Information on ACT scores and high school graduation rates, which are important outcomes for students at the end of the K-12 journey, are also included. To help make the connection between district resources and student success, we also include the district’s student to teacher ratio and amount of money that each district spent per-pupil.
That’s a lot of information! What is the most important?
We believe that the growth scores are the best indicator that districts are doing what’s really important: helping all students learn. Growth scores are less related to student characteristics than achievement scores, as districts serving fewer At Risk students don’t always have higher growth scores. The Growth Score indicates how much the district’s students in grades 3-10 improved over time on state assessments in English language arts and mathematics. This score also includes how well non-native speakers are progressing toward English language proficiency.
An average district, where students are growing academically just as predicted, will have a growth score of 80. In some districts, however, students are demonstrated greater increases in their academic performance from 2021 to 2022 than we would have predicted. To have a ‘good’ growth score, to be in the top 25% of schools in the state, elementary schools need a growth score of 82 or higher, middle level schools need a growth score of 82 or higher, and high schools need a growth score of 81 or higher.
NWA Report Card 2022 How Are NWA Schools Doing?
Overall: Northwest Arkansas students demonstrated greater growth in achievement and earned higher scores on the ACT Aspire than students in the state overall. Schools in NWA also have higher School Quality and Student Success scores than other schools across the state.
Academic Growth: Bentonville School District had the highest overall growth score among the traditional districts at each of the three school levels. However, Haas Hall Academy demonstrated the highest overall growth score at the high school level. Additionally, Gravette exhibits an overall growth score competitive with the larger districts bolstered by high middle level growth. Many NWA districts had high growth at one or two levels, and we recommend they focus on identifying how they are supporting student learning at the schools where students are not demonstrating high growth overall.
Academic Achievement: Haas Hall Academy students received the highest point-in-time achievement at high school level in the NWA area, and Founders Classical is outperforming traditional districts in achievement at the elementary level. Bentonville School District had the highest achievement score among the traditional districts, and Bright Field Elementary demonstrated the greatest academic achievement by a single school at the middle level in NWA. Since point-in-time achievement is often reflective of student demographics, we want to point out that among NWA districts where more than half of the students are eligible for the free/reduced lunch program, Rogers School District reported the highest achievement.
School Quality: Prairie Grove School District had the highest School Quality/ Student Success Indicator Score at the Elementary Level. Bentonville School District had the highest Indicator Score at the middle level and Haas Hall Academy had the highest School Quality/ Student Success Indicator Score at the high school level. Like achievement, many aspects of the school quality score are reflective of student demographics, so among NWA districts where more than half of the students are eligible for the free/reduced lunch program, Rogers School District received the highest school quality score.
Pulaski Report Card 2022 How Are Schools in Pulaski County Doing?
Overall: Pulaski County students are demonstrating similar growth in achievement to students in the state overall. However, students in Pulaski County schools demonstrated lower academic achievement, School Quality and Student Success scores, and graduation rates than students in the state overall.
Academic Growth: Friendship Aspire students demonstrated the greatest academic growth overall, with students at the elementary and middle levels receiving above average growth scores. Pulaski County Special had the highest overall growth score among the traditional districts, reflecting growth across all school levels. Students at eStem had the highest growth at the middle level and students at Academics Plus demonstrated the highest growth at the elementary level.
Academic Achievement: Academics Plus also had the highest point-in-time achievement of the Pulaski County area schools. Pulaski County Special School District had the highest achievement score among the traditional districts, with significantly higher elementary achievement scores compared to other traditional districts in Pulaski. Since point-in-time achievement is highly correlated with student demographics, we want to point out that among districts where more than half of the students are eligible for the free/reduced lunch program, LISA Academy leads the way.
School Quality: Academics Plus also received the highest School Quality/ Student Success Indicator Score overall. Pulaski County Special School District was the highest scoring traditional public school district in School Quality.
What’s the Takeaway?
In both the NWA and Pulaski County regions, there are educational settings where students are demonstrating high growth by making larger academic gains than predicted based on their past performance. We want to point out that high academic growth can be found at all different types of schools despite the ratio of students participating in free/reduced lunch program and non-native English speakers. Students demonstrate high academic growth in schools like Haas Hall, which also has high academic achievement, and also districts like Decatur where academic achievement is relatively low. Overall high school level growth and achievement is lacking, as the recovery from the turbulent school environment of the previous few years continues, raising further questions about learning support for students of differing backgrounds, as more affluent schools score higher at the high school level.
Here at the OEP, we think growth scores are a meaningful reflection of increased student learning, and that high growth scores can be achieved by any type of school.
- To have a ‘good’ growth score, to be in the top 25% of schools in the state, Elementary schools need a growth score of 82 or higher, Middle level schools need a growth score of 82 or higher, and High Schools need a growth score of 81 or higher.
- If your school or district received a growth score of 80, students are demonstrating average growth in their academic performance on the state assessments in English language arts and mathematics.
- If your school or district received a growth score below 78, students in your school or district are less likely to demonstrate academic growth than in the majority of schools in the state, and you should look for the reason. Remember that unlike achievement, student characteristics like poverty are not highly related to growth.
If you want to know more about your school’s performance, check out myschoolinfo and type in your school name. Under the “Reports” tab you can find the “ESSA report” for your school.
If you would like a printed copy of a report card, please send us an email at oep@uark.edu and let us know which one and where you want it sent!