Florida’s school report card

Seminole district got A; others in region got B’s, state says

showed better grades for public schools in 2018 compared with last year, with a bigger percentage earnings A’s or B’s.

Florida’s annual school report card showed better grades for public schools in 2018 compared to last year, with a bigger percentage earnings A’s or B’s and a smaller slice getting F’s, state officials announced Wednesday.

The A-to-F school report card — now in its 20th year — is based largely on how public school students performed on the series of standardized tests that Florida administers in reading, math, social studies and science. More than 3,200 schools received grades for 2018.

This year, 58 percent of Florida schools earned A’s or B’s, up from 56 percent last year, according to the Florida Department of Education. The percentage with D’s or F’s fell from 8 percent to 7 percent.

The school grades typically generate great public interest, even as many question whether a simple letter grade can adequately sum up what happens on campuses that enroll hundreds and even thousands of students. Last year, the Orange County school district began releasing its own school report card, hoping to provide more “comprehensive” information on its public schools.

Still, parents often check the state grades before enrolling their children, and Realtors sometimes tout them when selling houses. Educators feel judged by their schools’ grades, and schools that improve, or keep their A’s, earn extra money from the state.

Top grades are often a point of pride for schools and their communities.

“For the 9th year in a row, @Oviedo High has been rated an A school!” the student-run TV station at Oviedo High School tweeted after the grade release.

Florida’s 67 school districts also get state grades. The Seminole school district earned an A; the other Central Florida districts all got B’s.

But the grades, critics note, often mirror the economic status of a school’s students because children living in poverty often struggle academically and score lower on standardized tests. There are lots of A-rated schools in Seminole County’s well-off suburbs, for example, and far fewer in some of Orlando’s high-poverty neighborhoods.

The Orange school district, the region’s largest, saw three of its high schools — Boone, Timber Creek and Winter Park — regain their A status after dropping to B’s last year.

But it also saw three elementary schools — Ivey Lane, Lake Weston and Rock Lake — get F’s when no district schools received failing marks in 2017.

Seminole followed the state pattern, with more of its schools earning A’s and B’s this year than last.

It had two D-rated schools last year and one of them, Idyllwilde Elementary School, improved to a C this year while the other, Pine Crest Elementary School, remained at a D.

In Lake County, the number of A and B schools also increased, with 29 campuses earning good marks — up from 22 last year. Sixteen Lake schools earned C’s and two earned D’s.

“I set a long-range goal of making sure that every district-operated school in Lake County earn a grade of B or higher,” Superintendent Diane Kornegay said in a statement. “I am pleased to say that we are well on our way.”

In Osceola County, however, the percentage of A and B schools dropped in 2018 to 39 percent, down from 43 percent last year.

Florida’s 67 school districts also get state grades. The Seminole school district earned an A, and the other Central Florida districts all got B’s.

“We’re thrilled we’re an A district,” Seminole Deputy Superintendent Anna-Marie Cote said.

All the district’s middle and high schools earned A’s or B’s, but seven elementary schools got C’s, long with Pine Crest’s D.

That was disappointing but not unexpected, she said, as administrators knew students there were having trouble with reading and math.

“We’re going to get Pine Crest on the right track and move up … those C’s,” Cote added.