NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Letter grades for Tennessee schools have finally been released for the first time.
During Gov. Bill Haslam's tenure, the legislature passed a bill to assign letter grades to every public school in Tennessee. However, the state testing mayhem in 2018 and the pandemic halted the introduction of letter grades for eight years.
NewsChannel 5 analyzed the 300 or more comment cards submitted to the state about the system, which largely criticized that schools had no outlet for some variables schools had no control over like attendance and socioeconomic standings. Some chastised the whole process.
"School letter grades will provide Tennessee families with a clear rating system that gives them a snapshot of how their child’s school is performing,” said Lizzette Reynolds, Commissioner of Education. “No matter what your school’s letter grade is, everyone can play a role in supporting the success of our students and the success of our schools by engaging with your local school communities and joining the conversation."
Letter grades are weighted on four separate indicators: overall success rate for achievement, overall growth, growth for the lowest performing 25% of students in the school and college and career readiness.
"It is insulting to students, parents, educators and communities to label our schools with a single letter grade weighted heavily on a flawed high-stakes standardized test," said Tanya Coats, Tennessee Education Association president. "It is impossible to capture the hard work of Tennessee students and educators with such a simplistic rating. We’ve seen in other states the harm caused by labeling schools with a single letter grade."
This comes on the heels of Gov. Bill Lee announcing his plans to introduce his freedom scholarships, otherwise known as vouchers. When the legislature rings on Jan. 9, Rep. Mark White will carry the legislation in the House. It's not clear what it will look like in bill form yet. However, the governor will want to provide thousands of dollars for students to attend private schools in all 95 counties if the legislation passes.
