Three Key Takeaways from Elementary Schools with High Student Growth
Photo by Yan Krukov from Pexels
Elementary Schools Earning Top Growth Scores Run the Gamut
By: Sarah Potter, APR, Misti Jeffers, Ph.D., and Ashley Donaldson Burle
Last week, the PRiME Center released the Missouri Statewide Student Growth Report highlighting the top schools in terms of schoolwide student growth in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics and for students in the subgroup (historically underserved students). The report describes how we used the Missouri Growth Model measure and translated the state’s scale to create PRiME Growth Scores to help educators and the public better understand the significance of student growth. The PRiME Growth Score indicates which schools are moving students toward or beyond proficiency even if some students at these schools start the year far behind their peers when examining proficiency rates.
Examining and understanding student growth is critically important for education leaders and policymakers because it paints a more complete picture of school effectiveness and student learning. As shown in our report, there are many Missouri schools statewide that are successfully growing student learning regardless of their proficiency rates, and it is important for us to know what is happening in these high-growth schools.
In this blog, we draw attention to key takeaways from the elementary schools receiving top PRiME Growth Scores. Notably, the elementary schools earning high PRiME Growth Scores run the gamut, from urban to rural, from large schools to small, from schools with students starting off at high levels of proficiency or at low levels, and schools from all across the state. We provide a snapshot of the schools with the exceptionally high PRiME Growth Scores, but encourage school administrators to examine the Growth Scores in the full data set closely for all schools in their districts.
Here are three key takeaways from the Missouri Statewide Student Growth Report on elementary schools with outstanding student growth:
1. All elementary schools that appear in our top lists, both schoolwide and for the subgroup, have PRiME Growth Scores of at least 95.
There are 1,026 elementary schools with PRiME Growth Scores located in 451 districts and nine regions across Missouri. As there are so many elementary schools in the state, we’ve only captured a tiny slice of schools that are performing well in terms of growth in the top 20 lists. There are several schools with PRiME Growth Scores of 95 who just missed the top 20, but who also demonstrate exceptionally high growth. For example, LIttle Blue Elementary, Chesterfield Elementary, Grovespring Elementary, and KIPP Victory Academy all had schoolwide PRiME Growth Scores of 95.1 in ELA. For students in the subgroup, Hope Leadership Academy, Hawk Point Elementary, Robinson Elementary, and Spring Branch Elementary all had PRiME Growth Scores of 95 or above for math.
2. Top-growth elementary schools can have low proficiency rates.
While several schools have both high PRiME Growth Scores and high proficiency rates, many top-growth schools have low proficiency rates. For example, Wendell Phillips Elementary achieved a top 20 PRiME Growth Score in ELA, but just 26.7% of their students are considered proficient or advanced. In another example, only 34% of students in Caruthersville Elementary are considered proficient or advanced, yet the PRiME growth score places them in the top 10 for both schoolwide and subgroup math achievement. The data reveals a great deal of student growth; good things are happening that would not be apparent from a simple review of proficiency rates.
3. Some top-growth elementary schools are models for serving all students well.
While several top elementary schools appear on more than one list, eight elementary schools appear on all four top 20 lists. In the Missouri Bootheel, schools on all four lists include Blanchard Elementary, Matthews Elementary, Neelyville Elementary, and Richland Elementary. In Southwestern Missouri, schools include Humansville Elementary, Mark Twain Elementary, and York Elementary. In Kansas City, Cambridge Elementary appears on all four lists. Additionally, three of these eight schools (Blanchard, Matthews, and Humansville) have 100% of their students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Overall, the data indicates that these schools are serving all students well including those who have been historically underserved.
To learn more about how we created the PRiME Growth Score and to see all of our lists of the top schools for student growth, read the full report by clicking the button below.
