Of the 24 Plant City public and charter schools that took the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, only one showed year-to-year gains amid tougher tests, stricter grading standards and transition to Common Core State Standards.
Knights Elementary earned Plant City’s only A grade this year, up from a B in 2012. Letter grades for Plant City’s three high schools — Durant, Plant City and Strawberry Crest — were not released as of press time.
Aside from Knights, most area schools showed declines in test scores. Because of the changes in grading standards, the Florida Department of Education built a “safety net” that prevented any school from dropping into one letter grade. Of Plant City schools, seven — Burney, Cork, Dover, Lincoln and Springhead elementary schools and Advantage Academy (elementary and middle) — benefited from this “safety net.”
Statewide, the number of A schools dropped from 48% to 29%, while the number of F schools increased from 2% to 4%.
“These results reflect Florida’s commitment to higher standards and the hard work our great educators have put in to become the nation’s best,” Florida Commissioner of Education Tony Bennett said in a press release. “We still have a long way to go, but I am confident our schools and districts will rise to the challenge.”
“I applaud the commitment of our school and district leaders to the implementation of Common Core State Standards in 2014-15, which will free teachers to prioritize critical thinking and creativity in our students,” Bennett said. “The department will focus its attention on the schools most in need of assistance and work with educators to prepare them for the implementation of Common Core State Standards.”
In addition to the letter grades, the FLDOE also released a list of state’s 100 lowest-performing elementary schools, based on reading. Only one Plant City-area school — Dover Elementary — was on that list. Those lowest-performing schools will receive financial assistance.
Download a complete analysis of the 2013 Plant City FCAT grades here.