The Kentucky Department of Education released the annual School Report Card data from the 2021-22 academic year on October 18th, 2022. This year’s School Report Card data will feature the state’s new color-coded accountability system (previously known as their 5-star system). The state has now categorized progress status levels as very high (blue), high (green), medium (yellow), very low (orange) and low (red).
Garrard County Schools were collectively on pace with the state averages, with all three levels having an overall rating of yellow. The Garrard County school district had many content areas that scored "at or above" the state averages- which were very close to the school district’s pre-pandemic levels.
Superintendent Mr. Kevin Stull stated, “While we look forward to green and blue assessment results next year, we are incredibly grateful for the hard work put in by our teachers, support staff, administration, parents, and especially students to get back to pre-pandemic levels. We are confident the many supports currently in place will bring continued growth for all our students.”
Taking a Deeper Dive into GC Elementary Data
The Kentucky Summative Assessments were developed by Kentucky teachers and align with the Kentucky Academic Standards in each content area. These assessments are administered in grades 3 through 8, 10 and 11 to students. Elementary students are assessed in reading, mathematics (3rd-5th Grade), science (4th Grade), social studies (5th Grade), and writing (5th Grade). These assessments are Kentucky’s measure of student proficiency and progress on the state content standards.
Collectively, the three Garrard County elementary schools achieved the “yellow” (medium) ranking. GC elementary schools scored at the state level in math and scored above the state level in social studies, science and writing.
Garrard County School District’s Director of Elementary Teaching and Learning, Mrs. Holly Young, said, “I'm proud of the hard work the Garrard County elementary students, teachers, staff, and administrators have implemented this school year. The elementary teachers are collaborating across the district to design lessons aligned to the Kentucky Academic Standards and are using common high quality instructional resources. Teachers are giving daily formative assessments and analyzing the data to gauge mastery levels of the standards and to guide future instruction. As I'm in classrooms, I see students rising to the challenge and being an active participant in their learning. Based on the work done so far this year, I am expecting to see big growth in state assessment data and student achievement for the 2022-23 school year.”
Taking a Deeper Dive into GC Middle/High Data
Middle school students are assessed in reading and mathematics each year, while other content areas such as science (7th Grade), social studies (8th Grade), and writing (8th Grade) are only assessed once per level.
Garrard Middle School received an overall ranking of “yellow.” Students scored at state level in science and social studies, while scoring above the state level in writing.
High school students are assessed in reading and mathematics during their 10th grade year, and assessed in science, social studies, and writing during their 11th grade year.
Garrard County High School scored at state level in science and social studies, while scoring above the state level in math and writing.
High school students are also assessed on the ACT during their junior year of high school. This year, Garrard County High School experienced a 2.1 point increase (increase from 2021) on the ACT composite score.
Garrard County School District’s Director of Secondary Teaching and Learning, Mr. Larry Caudill, added, “We are pleased with the growth in many areas and recognize there is work to be done at the secondary levels. Post-pandemic, we will use these results as our baseline, set new goals, and challenge ourselves to examine all practices. Our secondary leaders and faculty are focused on developing a culture of high expectations, clarity, and result-oriented collaboration to meet the needs of all students. I'm confident we'll see growth on all of our measures, including KSA.”