Though most of the scores on Trimble Local School District's state report card improved from last year, most did not increase enough to pass the state passage rates.
The report cards, released by the Ohio Department of Education in late August, measure attendance and graduation rates and districts' achievement on proficiency tests, according to the department's Web site (http://www.ode.state.oh.us). The state has standards for each of these areas and assigns each district a rating based on how well it performed in each area.
Trimble did not meet six out of 18 state indicators and received an Academic Watch rating, according to the site.
District Superintendent Jack Loudin said he has already switched his focus to improving next year's scores.
I predict that by the end of this year
we will see a 25 percent increase in the kids that are scoring proficient on the tests and a one level improvement in how students are performing on the test Loudin said.
The district uses the Baldrige Model for school improvement, something Loudin said he anticipates will produce a large increase in students' proficiency test scores.
The Baldrige Model is a plan for improving a district's scores by putting an emphasis on testing students throughout the school year.
Instead of depending on the department's once-a-year tests, the district now tests all its students four times a year.
Typically in a school system improvement cycles happen on an annual basis
but that's too long to wait
Loudin said.
These assessments do not only help teachers assess students' progress, but also provide a basis for students to review materials and build on skills learned in previous grades, said Cindy Johnston, Trimble Elementary School principal.
Some of the things ... they'll be tested on in first grade are not touched upon (again) until the fourth grade
she said. The proficiency test scores are not just the responsibility of the fourth-grade teachers but the kindergarten teachers as well.
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