When the Oklahoma State Department of Education released report cards to the state’s
public schools, many experienced some less-than-satisfied moments. And although
reports for Marietta Public Schools weren’t where the school wanted to be, there was
plenty of good news to celebrate.
Areas of Improvement
One of the brightest spots for the entire district was the grades for English Language
Proficiency, a specific section of the report card that measures how English learners are
meeting their language-acquisition targets.
It’s an area that all three school sites – elementary, middle, and high school – are
knocking out of the park. In the elementary, the ELP score is 66 percent, up almost 6
percent from the previous year, and far beyond the state average of 34 percent.
“We improved in the area of EL students' growth,” said Elementary Principal Dana
McMillin. “Mrs. Scarbrough and Ms. Salas have planned their pullout times for students
to be pulled from general education outside of their reading and math instructional
times, so they don't miss that instruction. Mrs. Scarbrough has also doubled up on time
spent in her classroom for all 3rd graders. This has helped our students learn the
English language more effectively.”
In the middle school, 76 percent of English learners are meeting their targets, more than
double the state average. In the ELP category, MMS ranks number seven of 351 state
schools tested.
At MHS, the score for ELP is 63 percent, up five percent from last year, and almost
double the state average – definitely something for the entire district to crow about.
“Our English Language Proficiency Progress improved from a C to a B,” said High
School Principal Michael Oakley. “This came from launching a WIDA Boot Camp to
prepare students for the test and providing newcomers with a daily language skills
class.”
Another area where MPS had success across the board is with student attendance. By
offering attendance incentives, the elementary school improved chronic absenteeism 12
percent from last year to reach 96 percent, exceeding the state average of 81 percent of
students in good standing with their attendance.
The middle school’s rate was 87 percent, up six percent, and the high school reported a
93 percent rate of students in good attendance.
“Chronic absenteeism moved from an F to a B in the last two years,” Oakley affirmed.
“We changed the threshold from 10 days to eight, met one-on-one with students,
notified parents early, and placed students on attendance contracts when needed.”
Overall Scores
As far as overall report card scores are concerned, although the high school received a
D, that score does not reflect improvements that the site has made.
“We have improved 12 percentage points over the last two years, and we have several
areas that show real momentum,” said Oakley.
In addition to improvements in absenteeism and English language proficiency, the high
school improved in the Post Secondary Opportunities from a C to a B, likely resulting
from expanded concurrent enrollment and new internship classes.
Academic Growth also increased in the high school to 49 percent, near the state
average of 56 percent. Thirty-eight percent of eligible students gained early college and
career exposure, up almost seven percent from last year.
“We added ACT Prep classes this year and plan to build a schedule that includes time
for classroom interventions and support for students who are not yet where they need to
be,” insisted Oakley. “Our teachers are working every day to help students master their
learning targets at the level required by state standards. We will keep our focus on
academic achievement and essential standards.”
The middle school also received an overall score of D on the report card, although they
are making gains as well, showing improvement in academic growth.
“We are disappointed with our grade,” said Principal Carrie Tucker. “But we have
curriculum this year for both Language and Math that covers the important standards,
so we are hitting those hard. With the addition of the new curriculum, we are hoping to
see an increase in our students’ academic performance.”
Stellar Achievement
The elementary school received a B overall. For perspective, keep in mind that only a
very small handful of schools across the state – be they elementary, middle, or high
schools – earned the grade of A. In the Southern Oklahoma area, there were no public
schools who hit that mark.
So that means that Marietta Elementary is a shining star. Their academic growth score
of 79 percent, up 7.47 percent from last year, is far above the state average of 56
percent, earning MES the rank of 52 out of 690 schools tested.
Overall scores for the elementary were at 69 percent – up seven points from last year –
exceeding the state average of 54 percent. For Marietta Elementary, this report card is
definitely something to be proud of, especially when you consider it’s their second year
in a row to earn a B.
McMillin and Primary Principal Ann Rutledge insist that their stellar scores stem from a
combination of factors.
Rutledge bragged on teachers, insisting that they have worked hard to identify essential
state standards, to collaborate with other grade levels to align curriculum, and to
continually track student data to ensure that standards are being mastered as students
move from class to class.
“Our teachers are focused on working together to ensure the success of all students,”
Rutledge stated, “and this report card reflects that hard work and dedication.”
McMillin is excited about the report card, but not content. Her focus is on continued
growth and improvement.
“I am so proud of the dedication and determination our students and staff have shown in
raising our report card,” she said. “When we all understand where we are currently and
where we want to go, the journey together becomes achievable.”
Disaggregating the amount of data that comes on a school’s report card is no small
task, and often, there are areas of great success, along with those areas that need
improvement. In that, Marietta is not alone. However, overall, there does seem to be
cause for celebration in that all school sites do show several areas of real progress.
“We are proud of our students and staff for the many areas where our school report card
shows strong results and growth. At the same time, we see areas marked ‘needs
improvement’ not as setbacks, but as opportunities to get even better,” remarked
Superintendent Brandi Naylor.
“This report card gives us direction, and our educators are committed to using that
information to keep strengthening instruction, supporting every learner, and moving our
school forward. Growth, accountability, and continuous improvement are all part of the
work that we embrace every day.”