| EDITOR’S NOTE: Report Cards may be viewed at the State Department of Education’s web site at http://ed.sc.gov/. For background information from the Education Oversight Committee, visit at www.sceoc.org. |
Report Card Ratings Chart
2007 State Report Cards (pdf)
Statereport cards issued for public schools and districts show declines inmany Horry County schools ratings, even though gains have been made inmost assessments used to compute ratings.
As a district, Horry County Schools’ ratings remain unchanged from last year with an Absolute rating of Average and an Improvement rating of Below Average. Fifty-four percent of the 85 school districts in the state received Absolute ratings of Average or higher, a three-point decline from 57 percent last year. None of the state school districts received an Excellent Absolute rating, down from just three in 2006.
Absoluteratings report the performance of students during a given year, whileImprovement ratings compare the performance of matched students fromone year to the next. Ratings are received in one of five categories –Excellent, Good, Average, Below Average or Unsatisfactory.Results are based on student performance on the Palmetto AchievementChallenge Test (PACT), the High School Assessment Program (HSAP),End-of-Course assessments, and on-time graduation rates.
TheDistrict as a whole has shown improved PACT scores and improved HSAPscores from a year ago. On PACT, students showed improvements in 17 of24 scoring categories among those meeting state standards. Improvementswere shown in 18 of 24 categories among students scoring at Proficient and Advancedlevels. Student performance on PACT is higher than the state average inall grades and all subject areas for students meeting and exceedingstate-level standards.
District 10thgraders improved performance on HSAP and outpaced the state average onthe test, which is commonly referred to as the exit exam. In 2007, 81.9percent of HCS 10th graders passed HSAP on their firstattempt, a 1.2 point increase from 80.7 percent who passed in 2006.Statewide, 77.1 percent of 10th graders passed HSAP on theirfirst attempt last spring, a 2.4 point increase from 74.7 percent whopassed on their first attempt in 2006.
HSCstudents performed higher in two of three areas than other students incomparable districts on End-of-Course examinations given at theconclusion of designated courses. District students have a 15-pointlead in physical science, a two-point lead in English I, and trailone-half of a percentage point behind in Algebra I/Math for theTechnologies when compared to similar districts. The District’s on-timegraduation rate of 75.2 percent is 0.8 points higher than comparabledistricts, and represents an increase over 74.6 percent last year.
Increasinglystringent state and federal accountability requirements, coupled withmodest growth in test scores were factors that contributed to a declinein school and district State Report Cards. The State’s rating indexrequires a one-tenth point annual improvement to move from one ratinglevel to the next. Both Absolute and Improvement ratings are based onmathematical formulas set by the Education Oversight Committee, whichis created by the General Assembly to guide the implementation of theEducation Accountability Act which mandates that by 2010, SouthCarolina’s student achievement will be in the top half of statesnationally. The federal No Child Left Behind Act requires that everystudent score at the proficient level on state tests by 2014.
Eighty-five percent of Horry County schools received Absolute ratings of Excellent, Good, or Averageon 2007 State Report Cards, a decrease compared to 93 percent thatreceived the same ratings in 2006. Statewide, 60 percent of schoolswere rated Average or better, a decrease from 65 percent in 2006.
Forty-six percent, or 21 HCS schools received Absolute ratings of Excellent or Goodin 2007, compared to 26 percent at the state level. The Absolute ratingimproved in three schools, was unchanged in 26 schools, and decreasedin 16 schools. No school in the District received an Unsatisfactory Absolute rating. Last year, 60 percent of District schools, and 33 percent of state schools, received Absolute ratings of Excellent or Good.
Eleven out of 24 primary and elementary schools received either an Excellent or Good Absolute rating. Three out of 11 middle schools received a Good Absolute rating. Five out of nine high schools received an Excellent or Good Absolute rating. One of two academies was rated Excellent, while one was unrated due to the reconfiguration of the school.
Schools’ Absolute Ratings | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
Excellent | 10.8% | 17.8% | 34.0% | 40.0% | 45.5% | 39.5% | 20.9% |
Good | 34.7% | 42.3% | 40.9% | 48.8% | 40.9% | 48.8% | 51.2% |
Average | 39.1% | 33.4% | 22.7% | 11.1% | 13.6% | 7.0% | 25.6% |
Below Average | 15.2% | 6.7% | 2.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 4.7% | 2.3% |
Unsatisfactory | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
Twenty-eight percent of District schools received Improvement ratings of Excellent, Good or Averagein 2007, a four-point decrease from 32 percent in 2006. Statewide, 27percent of schools earned the same ratings, compared to 33 percent lastyear.
In order for schools to receive an Average Improvement 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,13 schools improved their Improvement ratings, 12 schools had decreasedImprovement ratings and 19 schools maintained Improvement ratings.
Schools’ Improvement Ratings | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 |
Excellent | 6.5% | 11.4% | 20.4% | 15.9% | 15.9% | 30.2% | 19.6% |
Good | 15.2% | 18.2% | 27.2% | 34.0% | 27.3% | 25.6% | 11.6% |
Average | 6.5% | 4.6% | 6.8% | 2.3% | 6.8% | 18.6% | 27.9% |
Below Average | 32.6% | 18.2% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 18.2% | 14.0% | 27.9% |
Unsatisfactory | 39.1% | 47.8% | 20.4% | 22.7% | 31.8% | 11.6% | 14.0% |
Morethan 37,000 Report Cards will be sent home with students in the nexttwo weeks. In addition to state and federal ratings required by theSouth Carolina Education Accountability Act of 1998 and the federal NoChild Left Behind Act of 2001, Report Card data also includestudent-teacher ratios, dollars spent per student, absentee rates forstudents and teachers, socio-economic status of students' families andaverage teacher salaries.
