Nevada to give more low star ratings to elementary, middle schools

More Nevada elementary and middle schools will be given low star ratings by the state in December, but high schools will not be rated this year, state education officials said Thursday.

The state’s star ratings system serves as a quick way for educators, parents and community members to judge schools against one another. A one-star school is the lowest rating and a five-star school is the highest. After changes to the system, new star ratings for elementary and middle schools are expected on Dec. 15 and the news may not be good, state officials said in an update.

“I think we’re going to see more two-star schools than we’ve had in the past,” state Superintendent Steve Canavero said at a state Board of Education meeting. “It reinforces the messaging around this is our starting line.”

In compliance with a new federal education initiative, the state changed the requirements in the star-rating system and was initially set to release the new ratings in the fall. But superintendents across the state raised concerns over the criteria the state was using to assign the ratings and the state went back to the drawing board.

Even with the latest changes, one-third of elementary schools in the state will be given two stars and 13 percent will be given five stars. About 31 percent of middle schools will be given two stars, with 16 percent getting five stars.

Across the rating spectrum, the two-star category will be the largest, state officials said.

High schools will not be given star ratings this year, as the state continues to work on evaluation standards.

The redesigned framework was designed to comply with the new federal Every Student Succeeds Act. Schools will be measured on factors that were previously considered in assigning star ratings, such as academic achievement, graduation rates, student growth toward proficiency and college and career readiness. But there are new factors as well, including English language proficiency and students attendance.

Schools are eligible to receive up to 102 points, including two bonus points for filling out a climate survey. The points are added together to provide an index score that translate to a corresponding star category.

High schools will have index scores this years and, generally, a higher index score correlates to a better performance across the categories.

So-called cut scores — the dividing lines between the star ratings — differ slightly for elementary and middle schools, but generally, a school earning lower than 30 points will be considered a one-star school. Schools earning between 30 and 50 points will receive two stars.

Three-stars schools will be those earning between 50 and 70 points, while four-star schools earn between 70 and 80 points. A five-star school must earn between 80 and 102 points.

Contact Meghin Delaney at mdelaney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0281. Follow @MeghinDelaney on Twitter