OHIO — The state's annual school report cards have been released, highlighting achievements of schools and districts across Ohio.
The 2024 Ohio School Report Cards showed an improvement in elementary school students' English language arts proficiency, according to Gov. Mike DeWine and the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce.
Schools and districts receive ratings of one to five stars in half-star increments. Ratings are based on five components: achievement, progress, gap closing, early literacy and graduation. Report cards also include student-level proficiency rates based on the State Tests in English language arts, math, science and social studies.
To find your school district's report card, click here.
For 2024, nearly 90% of districts earned overall ratings of three stars or higher, meeting the state expectations for performance.
“Our teachers continue to make great strides in building reading skills for students, and we believe we have the opportunity to continue improving in this area once all schools in Ohio become fully aligned with the Science of Reading,” said DeWine in a news release. “We know the Science of Reading works because we know now exactly how the brain learns to read. This is especially important for our young children, because the earlier they are able to master reading, the better positioned they will be for success in every subject throughout their education.”
Elementary students showed significant improvement in English language arts proficiency, climbing 2.2% in third grade, 5.2% in fourth grade and 3.1% in fifth grade.
Math proficiency also saw gains in grades 4-7 and in algebra, but report cards show only 53.5% of all students are proficient in math.
Report cards also include a report-only College, Career, Workforce, and Military Readiness component, measuring the preparedness of graduating classes for postsecondary education, enter the workforce, or join the armed forces. The 2024 results showed the percentage of students who earned an industry-recognized credential increased from 10.6% for the Class of 2022 to 19.5% for the Class of 2023.
“In one year’s time, we’ve gone from one-in-ten students earning an industry-recognized credential to one-in-five, which is also worth celebrating,” said DeWine in a news release. “In just this one category, we have twice as many students who are graduating with a clear pathway to jumpstart a great career.”
Graduation rates reached the highest level hit in more than a decade with 87.9% of the 2023 classes graduating within four years and 89.1% of the 2022 classes graduating within five years.
Report cards also showed chronic absenteeism rates declined from 26.8% in the previous year to 25.6%.
“Ohio’s school leaders, educators, staff, and families are dedicated to helping all students, and we’re seeing the results of their efforts with the progress made in early literacy, reduction in chronic absence, increased graduation rates, and the near doubling of students earning industry-recognized credentials,” said Ohio Department of Education and Workforce Director Stephen D. Dackin in a news release. “We have work to do in math and middle and high school literacy. This work is urgent because there are significant numbers of students who need additional learning supports. We remain resolute in our efforts to make sure every Ohio student is prepared for success.”