First batch of grades are in after introducing progress monitoring test to students

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Florida has a new way of testing students about what they’re learning in school, and the first batch of grades are in.

It’s the first time grades were released as part of Florida’s Assessment of Student Thinking. It monitors students’ progress by testing them at the beginning, middle and end of the school year rather than the traditional one-shot high stakes test. 

"We support the concept of doing assessments that are benchmark assessments that are given multiple times in the course of the year," Andrew Spar, the president of the Florida Education Association, said. "We do not support high stakes decisions being made on one test given at one point in the year."

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The Florida Department of Education released 2022-2023 grades for schools and districts across the state on Monday. Across the Tampa Bay area, districts’ scores were pretty consistent with last year’s. 

Sarasota kept its A and Polk stayed at a C. Pasco, Hernando, Manatee and Hillsborough all stayed at B's while Citrus moved up from a C to a B this year.

"We maintained our B grade, moving up two spots in the state rankings to 21st, our highest ranking as a district in the last decade," Pinellas County Schools Superintendent Kevin Hendrick said at a school board meeting Tuesday. 

Sixty-three percent of schools in Pinellas got an A or B.

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"There’s still much work to be done, but we’re proud of our schools and the performance of the entire district," Hendrick said.

Grades are based on English, science, math and social studies scores from the progress monitoring assessments. 

"They’re celebrating if the grade went up. They’re celebrating if they maintained an A," Spar said. "But what it really doesn’t do is give us a true picture of what's going on at the school and how the teachers and staff at that school are working miracles every day."

This is the sixth year that Hernando received a B. Five of Hernando’s schools improved a full letter grade. Brooksville, Deltona, Moton and Westside Elementary moved from a C to a B. Eastside Elementary, the district’s only "turnaround school," moved from a D to a C.

"We are so thrilled for these schools," said Gina Michalicka, the assistant superintendent of teaching and learning in Hernando. "The ultimate goal for all of our schools is increased student achievement. Our teachers and administrators pour over student assessment data and spend long days refining their instructional practice together. To be recognized in this way is so validating to their hard work."

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This was the fifth year that Manatee County got a B grade. 

"Over the summer, we anticipated what school grades might look like with the state's new grading formula," Hillsborough County Public Schools Superintendent Van Ayres said. "When schools opened in August, our schools immediately began taking necessary steps to help build capacity and provide guidance on systems and structures based on the needs of each school. We are seeing some positive results. Many of our students are improving their proficiency in ELA and math. While that may not be reflected in this year's school grades, we anticipate positive results next year when student learning gains are again included in the school grades."

"I'm pleased to see what our schools have accomplished, and two (50 percent) of our schools are no longer at an F status," Kurt Browning, Pasco superintendent of schools, said. "Now that we have the baseline grades, our teachers and administrators are focused on these data and planning for greater accomplishments based on this mid-year reflection. These data will help us to make informed decisions about improvements for the remainder of the year," he said.

Sarasota got an A for the 20th consecutive year. 

"We extend our deepest gratitude to our students, families, teachers, staff members, and community partners for their crucial contributions to this success. It is through their collective effort and unwavering support that we have achieved and maintained such high standards. Our teachers, the driving force behind our students' success, deserve special recognition. They have demonstrated exceptional dedication, resilience, and expertise in their work," Terry Connor, Sarasota superintendent of schools, said.

The grades this year are a baseline for schools and districts, so there won’t be penalties for schools or districts that didn’t perform well or got a lower grade than last year, the Florida Department of Education said.