SALT LAKE CITY — As educators continue making sense of this year's testing results and an abundance of other performance metrics, parents are wondering what something as simple as a letter grade means for their child's school.
This can be especially puzzling given repeated alterations to Utah's school grade system and how those grades are calculated. Metrics now include proficiency on the SAGE assessment and test participation, as well as graduation rates and ACT scores for high schools.
This year's percentage benchmarks were lowered by as much as 21 percent to "hold schools harmless" for the transition to SAGE and to achieve a similar grade distribution as last year, said Judy Park, associate superintendent of the Utah State Office of Education.
The benchmark for elementary and middle schools to get an A grade now starts at 64 percent, and just over one in 10 schools are clearing it.
For the 737 elementary and middle schools in the state, 13 percent received an A, 45 percent received a B, 31 percent received a C, 8 percent received a D, and 2 percent received an F.
Of Utah's 129 high schools, 5 percent earned an A, 45 percent got a B, 30 percent received a C, 11 percent received a D, and 9 percent received an F.
So what do the grades tell parents about their child's school? What direction do they give educators? How much do they indicate whether a school is meeting its goals?
"For me personally and professionally, not a whole lot," said Jared Wright, principal of Dilworth Elementary in Salt Lake City.
This year, Dilworth jumped from its previous rank among the top 20 schools in the state to the top 10 schools. But Wright still shares many of the same concerns about the grading system with educators at some of the lowest-scoring schools.
"It doesn't measure how welcoming (a school) is. It doesn't measure how flexible it is to meet an individual child's needs," he said. "I don't think it's a very effective measure to say whether it's a good school or not."
The grading system was established by lawmakers in 2011 as a way of increasing school accountability by giving parents an abbreviated picture of overall academic performance, specifically in math, science and English language arts.
While the system was intended to convey the data in a condensed an relatable way, some educators say one letter grade is too simplistic when measuring school quality.
McKell Withers, superintendent of the Salt Lake City School District, said school grades aren't a comprehensive metric for parents seeking specialized education for their kids because the grade doesn't include subjects like social studies, world languages, arts or physical education.
"You can say it's a B school, but if the school wants you to notice what they're doing with a particular set of kids, like arts and science, it's harder to communicate that when the school next door is an A school but does absolutely nothing with arts and science," Withers said.
What about PACE?
In response to criticisms calling the grading system overly simplified, the state school board also adopted the governor's PACE report card, which gives a more detailed account of school performance. The report includes school demographics, grade-level proficiency compared to state goals, and federal accountability measures in student growth.
"That's how PACE became because it was that issue of recognizing the school grade was quite narrow — how can we give more information, better information to really inform parents and the public?" Park said.
Utah schools also have individual school improvement plans that detail specific focus areas, such as student growth in certain subjects, teacher development, data-driven learning, funding and other issues, according to Withers.
Alice Peck, director of school performance for the Canyons School District, said reports like the PACE report or school improvement plans are sources parents can turn to for more information on student achievement at their child's school and how it compares with others in the district and the state.
Peck said each students' SAGE results also can be "really helpful" to parents wanting to understand how school grades and the PACE report apply to their child individually.
Starting point
"These reports are really meant to be a starting point," Peck said. "They're meant to help parents readily understand what's going on in terms of progress, in terms of goals that are being set and the things we're hoping to accomplish over a period of time."
Withers said parents who are unsure about where their child stands or how the school is performing can express concerns with teachers and school principals. He added that parents who volunteer at their child's school gain better insight and familiarity with how the school functions.
"Anytime a parent is involved in the school, the school gets better," he said.
Wright said even though school grades are not an all-inclusive method of gauging school quality, they're enough to spark discussion among educators and parents as they seek to get "the whole story" on what goes on in the classroom.
"Take it with a grain of salt," he said. "Be familiar with your school and you be the judge. Is the school responsive to your child's needs? Does the school listen to you as a parent when you are volunteering? Do you see the teachers developing themselves professionally? If I had advice for parents, it's know your school and then you make that decision."
Email: mjacobsen@deseretnews.com
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