Martin County - Monday December 11, 2023: The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) Monday announced school and district grades for the 2022-2023 school year.
The Martin County School District improved from 59% total points possible to 66% total points possible.
Under the previous model, this would have earned the district a grade of “A”, but as a result of the new model used to evaluate school districts, Martin County continues to maintain a B grade.
The grades assigned by the Florida Department of Education to each school district in the state reflect the first statewide administration of the Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) progress monitoring assessments. This particular assessment scheme provides teachers, students and families with actionable data at the beginning, middle and end of the school year to help guide and inform student achievement.
This type of assessment is known as a 'statistical equivalence'.
The statistical equivalence model assigned school and district grades equivalent to the grades issued for the 2021-2022 school year. That meant that the grades for the 2022-2023 school year were assigned proportionally to match the grades assigned in 2021-2022. Across the state, the number of A, B, C, D, and F schools were assigned to match the grade distribution in the 2021-2022 school year.
"The transition to the new assessment system provided an enhanced opportunity for our educators and administrators to conduct real-time data analysis and develop new ways to provide tailored support and educational experiences to our students," Superintendent Michael Maine said in a news release. "We found great value in FAST and our ability to carefully monitor students' growth and make adjustments throughout the school year. Our school grades reflect the fruit of this labor, as we've achieved remarkable progress in just a year's time. Our achievements will continue to fuel our commitment to achieving the top spot in Florida's accountability system."
In summary the data released by the Florida Department of Education indicates the following:
MCSD maintained its "B" ranking in the state accountability system, earning enough points to have been considered an "A" district under the previous iteration of the accountability model.
- MCSD tied for 9th place out of Florida's 67 school districts in the accountability rankings, a remarkable increase of 18 spots over the 2021-2022 school year.
- Half of all MCSD-operated schools improved at least one letter grade, with Crystal Lake Elementary School and Felix A. Williams Elementary School each improving two letter grades (C to A).
- · Each MCSD-operated school earned a grade of "C" or above. Eighty percent (80%) of schools achieved an increase in their percentage of total available points earned.
- · Pinewood Elementary School and Port Salerno Elementary School improved letter grades from "D" to "C", which means neither school is required to continue operating under FLDOE's Bureau of School Improvement (BSI) oversight. Hobe Sound Elementary School increased from a "C" to a "B."
- · MCSD is home to two of the top-performing elementary schools and one of the top-performing middle schools in the state: Palm City Elementary School (tied for #19), Citrus Grove Elementary School (tied for #20) and Hidden Oaks Middle School (tied for #16).
- · MCSD tied the Palm Beach County School District in the state rankings and outperformed both St. Lucie Public Schools and Okeechobee Public Schools.