Making the grade with higher standards
La. releases latest school performance scores
<p class="indent">Louisiana schools retained a B letter grade during the 2017-18 school year, according to results released Thursday by the Louisiana Department of Education.
<p class="indent">Calcasieu Parish schools improved from a C to a B. Jeff Davis, Cameron, Allen and Vernon parish school district grades dropped from A to B. Beauregard Parish maintained its B grade.
<p class="indent"><strong>See how individual SWLA schools scored:</strong>
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<p class="indent">State Education Superintendent John White said during a teleconference that the grades remained steady overall, despite expectations the higher standards would lead to major drops.
<p class="indent">“I’ve seen words like ‘plunge’ and ‘precipitous cliff’ used recently in some communications,” he said. “You don’t really see that here. You see modest shifts to reflect a gradual attainment of higher standards in student achievements.”
<p class="indent">Science performance statewide increased slightly, and high school students had better graduation rates, ACT scores and career or college credentials, White said. Scores in English and math did not change much from the 2016-17 school year.
<p class="indent">White said students are on the way to meeting the increased academic demands.
<p class="indent">“They may not be there yet, but they are on track to mastery because they made such strong gains over the course of the school year,” he said.
<p class="indent">Statewide, 13 percent of schools earned an A, 31 percent a B, 30 percent a C, 14 percent a D and 12 percent an F.
<p class="indent">Calcasieu School Superintendent Karl Bruchhaus praised the work by teachers and students to improve performance. He said all current seniors will graduate from A, B or C high schools.
<p class="indent">“(It’s) a first for the district since the letter grade system began,” Bruchhaus said.
<p class="indent">Sabrah Kingham, Lake Charles Charter School education director, said all three of its schools have worked hard to meet the state’s “raised expectations.”
<p class="indent">“The overall increase in our school performance scores is a testament of the commitment to excellence by our scholars, teachers and school board,” she said.
<p class="indent"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Coming Saturday:</span> How specific schools and populations of Calcasieu students fared in comparison with the rest of the state