(Posted on April 16, 2010)
EDITOR’S NOTE:
Report Cards may be viewed at the State Department of Education’s web site at http://ed.sc.gov/topics/researchandstats/schoolreportcard/2009/2601.html
State report cards issued for public schools and districts for the 2008-2009 academic year show that Horry County Schools’ Absolute and Growth ratings improved over the previous year. Fifty-six percent of district schools received Absolute ratings of Excellent or Good, up from 48 percent in 2008.Twenty-eight percent of schools received Growth ratings of Excellent or Good, up from 20 percent in 2008.
Collectively, 98 percent of HCS schools received Absolute ratings of Average or higher, up from 82 percent in 2008. Statewide, 84 percent of schools received ratings of Average or higher. District-wide, 46 percent of schools improved their Absolute ratings, six percent had decreased ratings and 48 percent maintained ratings.
As a district, HCS maintained its Absolute rating of Average, and dropped from Average to At-Risk in its Growth rating. In order for HCS to have maintained Average on its Growth rating, at least 10 percent would have had to have performed better than the year before. Anything less than a 10-perecent gain decreases the Growth rating by one level.
Absolute ratings report the performance of students during a given year, while Growth ratings compare the performance of matched students from one year to the next. Ratings are received in one of five categories – Excellent, Good, Average, Below Average or At-Risk. Results are based on student performance on the Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS) the High School Assessment Program (HSAP), End-of-Course tests, and graduation rates.
Report Card ratings normally are published in November, but the 2009 ratings were delayed due to the statewide process of changing from the replaced Palmetto Achievement Challenge Tests (PACT), formerly used to rate elementary and middle schools, to the new Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS). After scoring levels for the new PASS tests were set, the EOC had to revise the rating calculations for elementary and middle schools. Rating calculations were not changed for high schools or school districts.
2009 Absolute Ratings for HCS
|
Schools’ Absolute Ratings |
2009 |
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2005 |
2004 |
2003 |
2002 |
2001 |
|
Excellent |
28% |
14.0% |
10.8% |
17.8% |
34.0% |
40.0% |
45.5% |
39.5% |
20.9% |
|
Good |
28% |
34.0% |
34.7% |
42.3% |
40.9% |
48.8% |
40.9% |
48.8% |
51.2% |
|
Average |
42% |
34.0% |
39.1% |
33.4% |
22.7% |
11.1% |
13.6% |
7.0% |
25.6% |
|
Below Average |
2% |
18.0% |
15.2% |
6.7% |
2.2% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
4.7% |
2.3% |
|
At-Risk |
0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
0.0% |
Schools’ Growth ratings…
Eighty-two percent of District schools received Growth ratings of Excellent, Good or Average in 2009, a 42-point increase from 40 percent in 2008. In order for schools to receive an Average Growth rating, at least 10 percent of students must perform better than the previous year. A Good Improvement rating requires a 30 percent increase in performance while an Excellent Improvement rating requires a 40 percent increase.
District-wide, 70 percent of schools improved their Growth ratings, 18 percent had decreased ratings, and 12 percent maintained ratings.
2009 Growth Ratings for HCS
|
Schools’ Growth Ratings |
2009 |
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2005 |
2004 |
2003 |
2002 |
2001 |
|
Excellent |
6% |
12.3% |
6.5% |
11.4% |
20.4% |
15.9% |
15.9% |
30.2% |
19.6% |
|
Good |
22% |
8.2% |
15.2% |
18.2% |
27.2% |
34.0% |
27.3% |
25.6% |
11.6% |
|
Average |
54% |
10.0% |
6.5% |
4.6% |
6.8% |
2.3% |
6.8% |
18.6% |
27.9% |
|
Below Average |
8% |
38.8% |
32.6% |
18.2% |
25.0% |
25.0% |
18.2% |
14.0% |
27.9% |
|
At-Risk |
10% |
30.7% |
39.1% |
47.8% |
20.4% |
22.7% |
31.8% |
11.6% |
14.0% |
Nearly 38,000 Report Cards will be sent home with students in the next two weeks. In addition to state and federal ratings required by EAA and the federal No Child Left Behind Act, Report Card data also include student-teacher ratios, dollars spent per student, absentee rates for students and teachers, amount of instructional time, average teacher salaries and the socio-economic status of students’ families.