The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) has released statewide school and district accountability grades for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Long Beach finished atop the rankings with 803 total points. The coastal district had top 10 scores in reading, math, history, and science with a 92.9% graduation rate. Rounding out the state’s five best school districts were Clinton, Ocean Springs, Union County, and Petal.
Overall, 87% of districts were given a C grade or higher for the 2021-2022 school year. Though overall grades appear to have improved since 2019, MDE officials advise caution when interpreting score changes between 2018-2019 and now.
“The pandemic not only disrupted teaching and learning, (but) it also impacted the state’s accountability system that evaluates the effectiveness of schools and districts,” State Superintendent of Education Dr. Kim Benton said. “While we are encouraged by the tremendous growth, it is especially important this year to look at all the components that make up each school and district grade to get a complete picture of student growth and achievement.”
Mississippi’s accountability system includes the following components:
- Student proficiency and growth rates in ELA and Mathematics in grades 3-8
- Growth of the lowest performing 25% of students in ELA and Mathematics
- Science proficiency in grades 5 and 8
- English Learner progress toward becoming proficient in the English language
- Performance on the ACT and high school Algebra I, English II, Biology and U.S. History assessments
- Student participation and performance in advanced coursework such as Advanced Placement and dual credit/dual enrollment courses
- Four-year graduation rate
Of the 145 school districts, there were 45 As, 36 Bs, 46 Cs, 12 Ds, five Fs, and one N/A.
The full results from MDE’s accountability grades can be viewed here.
Rejection of all but one charter school in Mississippi is wrong choice, expert says
