The latest data on the state’s comprehensive measure of schools showed that most Dougherty County School System schools improved in student content mastery, progress and overall readiness but struggled with meeting closing gap targets for some subgroups.

Statewide, the Georgia Department of Education says that the overall CCRPI score for the state
slipped from 76.6 to 75.9. Scores statewide dropped in each grade cluster, with the middle school score dropping the most, from 77.2 in 2018 to 72 in 2019.

Despite having a majority of its schools improve in three out of the four key areas that the College and Career Readiness Performance Index measures, the district mirrored the state’s overall performance and saw a decrease in its overall score from 68.4 to 65.8.

In Content Mastery, 16 of the district’s 21 schools showed improvement over the previous year, with three of the remaining five missing the mark by less than 1.5 points.

In Progress, 12 of the district’s 21 schools showed improvement in growth percentages over last year. The report shows that 18 DCSS schools met the Readiness category.

Still, Achievement Gap had the biggest opportunities for improvement with eight schools meeting or exceeding targets.

“Today’s report shows what every educator in the state knows, students are more than just a number,” Superintendent Kenneth Dyer said. “When taken on the whole, the report shows that more students are mastering the content, are showing progress and are ready to take on the next level. This report also shows that we have some opportunities to make sure that our students that come into our schools with different challenges than others are able to advance through the system the same way as the rest of our students.”

GaDOE defines the “Closing Gaps” component in that it “sets the expectation that all students and all student subgroups make improvements in achievement rates. This component is based on CCRPI improvement targets for academic achievement, which are represented by improvement flags, and it provides an opportunity for schools to demonstrate the progress made in improving student performance among all student subgroups.”

Those subgroups include students such as non-native English Language learners or students with special needs, among others. Those student subgroups are expected to meet performance targets that are set based on the school’s previous year’s performance.

At the state level, Governor Brian P. Kemp and State School Superintendent Richard Woods acknowledged that work still needs to be done to support students and improve student
achievement, while expressing a need to refine the CCRPI measurement to ensure it is a fair
and stable measure that accurately captures school performance.

“I am a strong supporter of holding schools accountable for increased student achievement, but in a year when we’ve seen nearly across-the-board increases in national test scores and graduation rates as well as Georgia Milestones scores, seeing the CCRPI show a decrease instead raises concerns about the measurement used to determine school and district achievement,” Governor Kemp said. “I believe that we need to engage in a thoughtful process to create an accountability system that paints a true picture of what’s happening in a school.

With unprecedented alignment between my office, the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement, and the Department of Education, I’m confident that we’re finally in the right position to make long-needed refinements to this measurement.”

Superintendent Woods emphasized his commitment to work with state and federal partners to
reduce the weight of standardized test scores in the CCRPI and move toward a wider and deeper measurement of performance that reflects the true mission of K-12 public schools: preparing students for life.

“As we aim to lessen the number of high-stakes tests our students take, we need the weight of testing in CCRPI to reflect the same priorities,” Superintendent Woods said. “Georgia’s parents, taxpayers, students, and educators deserve a fair measurement of performance that lifts up,
rather than labels, our public schools. Working with Governor Kemp and the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement, the time is right to make that shift.”

In a meeting this week with district principals, Dyer urged them to remember that the priority of the district remains to provide opportunities for students to succeed and improve, regardless of their zip code or situation. He also encouraged them to stay focused on providing high-quality classroom instruction and to avoid simply chasing points.

“We can’t fall into the trap of simply chasing CCRPI Points just to make our schools or district look better. Instead, we have to keep our eyes on providing the best classroom instruction possible. If we keep our students first, the points will come,” Dyer said.