Local schools all meet or exceed DPI expectations on report cards

By Kevin O Brien

Public schools in Athens, Edgar, Marathon and Stratford continue to meet or exceed expectations set by the the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, according to the most recent state report cards released last week.

For the 2023-2024 school year, all four local districts and each of the 13 schools within those districts scored above the 58-point minimum on the 100-point scale used for determining whether schools are meeting expectations in areas such as classroom attendance and reading and math scores.

Six schools exceeded expectations by scoring over 70 points on the annual assessment, and one school, Stratford Elementary, landed in the top category of “significantly exceeds expectations” with a score of just under 90 points out of 100.

The Stratford and Marathon school districts both exceeded expectations, scoring over 70, while the Athens and Edgar districts met expectations with scores in the mid-60s.

Overall scores are calculated by a weighted average of scores in four categories: achievement in math and English Language Arts; year-to-year progress on state tests; test scores and attendance rates of

See REPORT CARDS/ page 2 Report cards

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traditionally low-performing student groups; and indicators of students being on track to graduate on time.

To measure reading and maths skills, students in grades third through eighth take the Forward Exam, while high school students take either the Pre-ACT Secure or ACT. However, this past summer, the DPI lowered the threshold for when students are considered to be meeting grade-level expectations.

The “cut scores,” which are the minimum points needed to achieve different levels of proficiency on standardized tests, were realigned based on updated academic standards. The terms for student test performance were also changed, with “below basic” being replaced by “developing,” “basic” by “approaching,” and “proficient” by “meeting.” The highest scores are still referred to as “advanced.”

As a result, DPI officials say the test results from 2023-2024 should not be compared to previous years’ scores, which has put school districts in a bind when evaluating student achievement over time.

Statewide, 93 percent of Wisconsin’s 377 school districts either met or exceeded expectations in 2023-2024, and 84 percent of the 1,939 schools reached the same thresholds.

Superintendents at two of the area’s school districts mentioned the newly released report cards at monthly school board meetings held last week.

During the Stratford School Board’s monthly meeting on Nov. 20, superintendent Nathan Lehman highlighted three points of pride for the district. He said the district’s overall score is higher than any other district in the area, and its ACT scores were the highest ever and highest in the Marawood Conference. He also noted that Stratford Elementary has one of the highest scores in the state.

On the same night in Edgar, superintendent Cari Guden district officials do compare state report cards with other districts, but they also focus on the district’s own self assessments, which are available under the Main Menu “District” tab at www.edgar. k12.wi.us. These local report cards focus on additional factors, such as grade-point averages, participation in co-curricular activities and college credits earned.

“Of course, we always know there’s room for growth and we’re always looking at what we can do to get to that next accountability rating or to that top one,” Guden said.

The full report cards for every public district and school in the state are available under “Latest News” at dpi.wi.gov.