COLUMBUS, Ohio – East Cleveland City School District, long derided by state lawmakers for its decades of low test scores, increased its overall performance on school district report cards the state released Sept. 15.
However, it’s not alone.
Other Northeast Ohio districts also improved year-over-year on the report cards. The following is a list of districts that improved. Three stars is required to meet state standards on the report cards.
Cuyahoga County
-Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District: 3.5 stars, up from 2.5
-East Cleveland City: 3 stars, up from 2
-Garfield Heights City: 3 stars, up from 2
-Parma City: 4 stars, up from 3.5
Geauga County
-Painesville City Local: 3 stars, up from 2.5
-Willoughby-Eastlake City: 3.5 stars, up from 3
Lorain County
-Firelands Local: 4 stars, up from 3.5
Portage County
-Windham Exempted Village: 3 stars, up from 2.5
-Field Local: 4 stars, up from 3.5
-Rootstown Local: 4 stars, up from 3.5
Summit County
-Akron City: 3.5 stars, up from 2.5 stars
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The report cards are based largely on standardized tests taken last spring.
Parma City School District credited its improvement last week in part to teacher professional development in the “science of reading” instructional approach, which focuses on phonics and vocabulary. Teachers monitored student progress throughout the year and used data to identify when support was needed.
Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools’ improvement was driven by gains in early literacy and gap closing — a measure that evaluates graduation rates, absenteeism, gifted student performance, and achievement across income, racial and ethnic groups.
Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District noted progress in student growth and gifted education.
Firelands Local School District in Lorain County said it had dedicated intervention periods, curriculum alignment across grade levels and coaching for teachers in English and math.
The improvements come as districts across Ohio continue to recover from pandemic-related learning losses and adapt to new instructional models.
