Back to the Student Counts Within the Oklahoma School Report Card

By June Gerred, Glenpool Public Schools, Director of Instructional Technology and Data Analytics

In reflection over the past two years in Oklahoma schools, as educators we must take pride in what we have learned in a crash course which we will remember as the “COVID years.” We have learned and implemented many measures of school safety, student and staff well-being, distance learning, blended learning, student attendance codes and protocols in various instructional settings, and more.

While learning all the survival strategies of keeping our schools open safely, we have continued to seek and implement the best, evidence-based practices for student learning, evidenced by the new high school aviation curriculum that will be implemented with industry certifications in 57 Oklahoma schools in the 2022-23 school year and many other innovative programs building bridges to a strong future for Oklahoma students. Never let it be said that schools were just trying to survive COVID, when in truth schools continued to thrive in spite of COVID’s numerous interruptions of our schools’ operations causing us to adopt the word “PIVOT” as a part of schools’ academic vocabulary.

We will PIVOT once again in the fall of 2022 as Oklahoma schools return to the use of the state report card system. Oklahoma schools have not seen a published Oklahoma school report card since the 2018-2019 school year. Before looking at the results of your school’s academic achievement, ELAP progress, chronic absenteeism, graduation, and postsecondary opportunities, take some time to reflect on last year. Be ready to tell your school’s stories of success and challenges during the “COVID years.” Ask yourself:

■ How many students were in distance learning last year?

■ How many days did your district shut down or move to distance learning either due to COVID or weather?

■ Were parents instructed to keep symptomatic students at home?

■ Were symptomatic students sent home?

■ For families who chose virtual school, was student learning monitored and supported at home?

■ How well do EL students learn in a distance learning environment?

Based on the experience of your district, begin to look at your data now to know what to expect, and to plan strategies to address challenges as we enter the new school year. The Accountability Reporting site in the Single Sign- On (SSO) has all your data easily accessible from last year.

Attendance Tab

■ Sort students by site or grade level by the Absence Rate column.

■ You can easily determine the percentage of students who were chronically absent.

English Learners

■ Sort by the EL Proficiency Status column.

■ What is the percentage of students who are “On Track”?

Assessments

■ Sort by the Performance Level column.

■ Calculate the number or percentage of students advanced or proficient.

■ Use the Scale Score PY column to see students who experienced growth from last year.

Enrollment Graduations

■ Sort by the Graduated column

■ How many students graduated last year in 4, 5 or 6 years?

Coursework

■ Sort by the PS (post-secondary) Credit Eligible column.

■ How many of your students had opportunities to participate in post-secondary learning opportunities?

This exercise will paint a picture of what you can expect when the school report card is published. There should be no surprises. Begin to have conversations in your school about areas of celebration, for example:

■ The students who experience assessment growth from the previous year

■ The EL students who met English proficiency.

■ The number of students who reached their graduate.

■ The number of students who were in the classroom more than 90% of the time.

■ The number of students who were able to participate in postsecondary opportunities.

Plan for the new school year. You have refreshed your memory, and you know the challenges ahead. Begin to identify the things you have control over and the things you can change. Formulate plans and procedures for success within your school using the data systems we have available.

Use Accountability to regularly monitor chronic absenteeism.

■ By the 2nd week of school, you can identify at risk students and begin interventions.

■ Set a schedule and identify staff for checking the data.

■ Develop early intervention strategies and parent engagement.

Use Accountability to identify students:

■ With scale scores near the next performance level.

■ Identify students who did not make any growth and help the student set a growth goal for themselves.

■ Develop Common Formative Assessments (CFAs) at multiple Depth of Knowledge (DOK) levels to track student growth during the school year.

Use Accountability School Data > School Courses to:

■ Ensure Advanced Placement, Career Tech, College level courses are coded correctly for credit.

■ Add or expand student internship opportunities for students.

■ Think about using virtual options for to increase AP courses offered.

Tell the story of your school along with your school report card. Brainstorm with your staff, students, and community. What do you want your schools to be known for? What is your school’s action plan to achieve your goals? What makes your school standout, what makes you special? Why should families choose your community and school? While it is very important for schools to be accountable, it is also important to recognize the uniqueness of your district and school that can’t be measured with a score or letter grade. Celebrate your successes and tell your story!