More than 110,000 third graders across the state, an increase of more than 25,000 students from the fall, are ready for fourth grade according to preliminary reading scores on the Ohio Achievement Assessment (OAA). Locally, students at Pleasant and River Valley beat the state average, Elgin and Ridgedale came up just short, and Marion City fell far below.
88 percent of third graders have now earned a score of 392 on the reading portion of the OAA, up from 63.1 percent who passed during the first round of OAA reading testing in the fall. To be eligible for promotion to the fourth grade, students must earn the 392 promotion score.
The local scores included:
- Pleasant – 95.5%
- River Valley – 92.1%
- Elgin – 87.2%
- Ridgedale – 86.2%
- Marion City – 75.2%
Those scores are all big jumps from the first test taken back in October 2013. Those scores are below.
- Elgin – 48.1%
- Marion City – 37.7%
- Pleasant – 60.7%
- Ridgedale – 37.9%
- River Valley – 58.4%
Those students who have yet to pass will have additional opportunities to do so this summer. Schools can give students two more opportunities to earn a promotion score – on the summer administration of the OAA reading test or by using one of three approved alternative assessments approved for districts to give when they think students are ready. Performance on those tests will be known later this year.
“These preliminary results show that most Ohio students have mastered the reading skills they need to be successful, but more needs to be done,” said State Superintendent Richard Ross. “We need to continue and in some cases increase our efforts to ensure every boy and girl in Ohio will have the skills necessary to be lifelong learners.”
Many school districts have implemented special reading programs to help students who are struggling to earn a promotion score. The Ohio Department of Education also provided $13 million in grants to nearly 100 applicants for programs to provide extra help to students and families.
In addition, some students are exempt from being retained even if they do not obtain a passing score. Those include:
- Limited English proficient students who have been enrolled in U.S. schools for less than three full school years and have had less than three years of instruction in an English as a Second Language program;
- Special education students whose IEPs specifically exempt them from retention;
- Any student who has received intensive remediation for two years and was previously retained in Kindergarten through the third grade.
If the student remains in the third grade, the school must provide a high-performing reading teacher and 90 minutes of reading instruction each school day. A student can still take fourth-grade classes in all other subjects, if the student is ready. Schools can move students to the fourth grade in the middle of the year if the student’s reading improves.
For district-by-district results of the number of students who scored the promotion score on the spring OAA, click here.
About Marion Online News
