Kentucky report card data released Wednesday showed results from state-administered tests students took in spring 2021, giving educators and the community a limited glimpse into the impact COVID-19 has had on Kentucky students' learning and academic growth.
More: See 2021 K-PREP test scores here with searchable database
More from the Courier-Journal: Kentucky test scores wobble after pandemic-stricken school year. Here's why
Though these are the first results to be released since the start of the pandemic, most of the figures are not comparable to data from years past, officials said. But some results, such as graduation rates and kindergarten readiness screening, were comparable. In Northern Kentucky, nine of 14 school districts saw slight to significant drops in graduation rates since the 2019-2020 school year.
More than 329,000 students were tested across the state, though testing circumstances and the tests themselves were modified slightly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"In short, these are different tests on different standards and they were administered under unusual circumstances to fewer students," Kentucky Commissioner of Education Jason E. Glass said during a media briefing Tuesday afternoon. "For these reasons, school districts, the news media, parents and community members are advised against making year-to-year comparisons using this state-level data."
The most significant drop in graduation rates in Northern Kentucky was at Bellevue Independent Schools, which went from a 100% graduation rate in the 2018-2019 school year, to a 97.9% graduation rate the year after, to last year reporting an 86.9% graduation rate.
Five local districts' graduation rates slightly increased from the year before, the largest change being at Erlanger-Elsmere Independent Schools. The district reported an 88.8% graduation rate in the 2018-2019 school year, a 90.1% graduation rate the year after, and last year a 95.9% rate, the data shows.
Graduation rates were down slightly across Kentucky last year but barely increased among Black students.
“It is good to see this improvement in the graduation rate among Kentucky’s African American students,” said Thomas Woods-Tucker, the department's deputy commissioner and chief equity officer. The department "is dedicated to closing more gaps among student groups by helping districts use evidence-based strategies to increase equity.”
Half of the region's kindergarten readiness screening rates decreased since 2019, while the other half improved. The greatest increase in Northern Kentucky was at Dayton Independent Schools, which jumped from 45.6% in the 2019-2020 school year to 83.3% last year.
Northern Kentucky's greatest decrease in kindergarten readiness was at Bellevue Independent Schools, which has seen fluctuating rates in recent years. The district had a 28.9% readiness rate in the 2017-2018 school year, 51.1% in the 2018-2019 school year, 71% in the 2019-2020 school year and 53.5% kindergarten readiness rate last year.
Statewide, kindergarten readiness screenings improved from 51% in the 2019-2020 school year to 53.2% last year.
Scores that experts say should not be balanced against years past include ACT scores and benchmark testing.
In Kentucky, the average composite ACT score was 18, according to the data. Fort Thomas Independent Schools held the highest average composite ACT score in Northern Kentucky at 22.2, while Covington Independent Schools held the lowest in the region at 14.9.
Benchmark testing showed 30% of Kentucky fourth-grade students below basic reading standards and 20% below basic mathematics standards. Eighth graders are also tested, and the data showed 25% of those students below basic reading standards and 35% below basic mathematics standards.
Glass said these results are "not what we wanted to see," but also not surprising considering disruptions due to the pandemic.
"It's going to take us some time for our students and schools to recover from this experience, especially when we know that COVID-19 related disruptions are continuing to occur," Glass said.
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