HANCOCK COUNTY — Schools saw slightly lower scores on the 2021 state standardized reading test for third-graders compared to 2019. Educators say the dips are expected amid an ongoing pandemic that continues to spur learning loss among students.
The Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination, or IREAD-3 exam, measures the development of foundational reading skills by third grade. It was most recently administered last spring, with retakes following in the summer. The test was not administered in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nearly one in every five Hoosier third-grade students — 18.8% — did not achieve reading proficiency on IREAD-3, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
Here is a summary of where scores stand in each county district:
Eastern Hancock
At Eastern Hancock, 94% of students passed the IREAD-3 in 2021, a slight drop from the district’s 94.4% score in 2019.
Superintendent George Philhower said the district was excited for the elementary school’s results.
“That was not an easy task coming off COVID,” Philhower said.
He doesn’t think the outcome is due to any one specific factor, but many.
“I really feel like when students do well on standardized tests, that just means that they’re receiving really good instruction during the school day,” he said.
Philhower said seven students did not pass when the test was first administered last spring, prompting the school system to provide them with extra support, whether during the school day or after school.
“A lot of times those kiddos have the skill set; it’s a confidence issue or a stamina issue,” he said. He added teachers work with those students to help them feel more confident and practice exercises with longer durations.
Mt. Vernon
Mt. Vernon came out of the 2021 IREAD-3 with a 92.8% pass rate, down from its 2019 result of 95.7%.
Scott Shipley, Mt. Vernon’s director of curriculum, told the Daily Reporter in an email that the district’s score before the summer retake was 83.3%.
“The extra time working with students was needed especially this year after COVID,” Shipley said, adding the increase of 8.7 percentage points between the initial administration and retakes was higher than Mt. Vernon’s traditional rise of 4 to 6 points.
He added the drop from 2019 wasn’t too bad considering those students spent the final quarter of their second-grade year learning virtually before an unprecedented third-grade year.
“Our teachers and students worked really hard as we dealt with the global pandemic, but I believe it would be remiss if we didn’t think this had some effect on the rate of student learning,” Shipley said.
Shipley also noted Mt. Vernon hired nine new math and reading specialists for K-12 for the 2021-2022 school year. The district used to have one reading specialist in each elementary school, and now has a total of 12 specialists providing additional math and reading instruction.
“This additional instruction is occurring during the school day outside of their regular reading and math time,” Shipley said. “So far this school year our specialists have shared impressive stories of students increasing their math and reading skills.”
Southern Hancock
Southern Hancock’s 2021 IREAD-3 score was 88.9%, down from 2019’s 94%.
“The students represented in these scores have been through a lot over the last two school years,” superintendent Lisa Lantrip told the Daily Reporter in an email. “Their second-grade school year was cut short due to COVID-19. Many students missed significant portions of their third-grade year due to COVID-19 protocols. These students have risen to the challenge and are achieving at incredibly high levels. Our teachers, support staff, and elementary administrators are doing incredible things to meet the needs of all children in our classrooms each day.”
She added that the school district works to improve literacy at the elementary level through efforts like the reading tutoring program Helping One Student to Succeed, or HOSTS, as well as other interventions. Lantrip also referred to the SOAR summer school program, which provides students with opportunities to improve literacy skills in small-group settings. Southern Hancock has hired literary specialists in each of its three elementary schools as well, she said.
Greenfield-Central
Among Greenfield-Central’s third-graders, 87.3% passed the I-READ3 in 2021, down from 92.4% in 2019.
Megan Thompson, the district’s director of elementary education, said it’s not surprising to experience such a dip during a pandemic. She added students often excel when grouped into smaller cohorts based on their specific needs, something COVID-19 complicated greatly.
Thompson thinks another factor is students and teachers continuing to acclimate to a new reading program the district adopted during the 2019-2020 school year.
“So for us it was a bit of a double-whammy,” she said.
She added Greenfield-Central still has plenty to be proud of, like Eden Elementary School’s nearly 98% score and significant improvements among students who retook the test in the summer.
The district continues to take literacy seriously, especially in light of the novel coronavirus’ effect on education, Thompson said. She noted data indicates literacy would be impacted for early learners, who in many ways don’t know life without a pandemic.
On a recent e-learning day, G-C educators teaching kindergarten through third grade underwent professional development focusing on literacy and research-based best practices, Thompson continued. She added the district plans to continue offering similar professional development opportunities in the future.
“We are reflective but looking forward,” she said.
