GMAS results are in!: More than 1/3 of 3rd and 8th graders still not reading at grade level

The Georgia Department of Education (GADOE) has posted the Georgia Milestones Assessment System (GMAS) results for the 2023-2024 school year .

SCCPSS Public Information Manager Sheila Blanco sent out a press release around 12:30 p.m. Friday highlighting that the district saw "gains in nearly all subjects and grade bands in school year 2024."

Overall, high school and middle grades English Language Art (ELA) scores improved 4 points and 8 points, respectively.

GADOE Communications Director Meghan Frick stated that Math GMAS results will be released later this fall because the GADOE updated the math assessments to "align with K-12 Mathematics Standards first implemented during the 2023-24 school year." Algebra assessment data for high school (and some middle school) students will also be released at that time.

While there is much data to review by school and all grade levels, which the public can access via the GMAS Dashboard , the Savannah Morning News has compiled an initial overview.

First, here's what to know about GMAS

GMAS (according to the GADOE website) is "a comprehensive summative assessment program and represents a single system of summative assessments that span all three levels of the state's educational system – elementary, middle, and high school."

To determine student performance and level of knowledge attainment, GADOE groups students into the following categories based on test score ranges :

• Beginning Learners - do not yet demonstrate proficiency and need substantial academic support for success at the next level.
• Developing Learners - demonstrate partial proficiency but need additional academic support for success at the next level.
• Proficient Learners - demonstrate proficiency and are prepared for success at the next level.
• Distinguished Learners - demonstrate advanced proficiency and are well-prepared for success at the next level.

Essentially the public should hope that the beginning and developing learners percentages decrease compared to last year, while proficient and distinguished percentages increase year-over-year.

Review GMAS info: Read this overview of Georgia Milestones Assessments key information

SCCPSS third grade 2024 GMAS results

GADOE begins assessing student academic performance in third grade, a particularly crucial developmental juncture for both literacy and math.

Here's the results for the 2,596 SCCPSS third graders from the 2023-2024 GMAS, which shows a slight improvement over last year's results.

Third grade Reading Status

• Below grade level - 42.0 percent | 43.5 percent in 2023
• At grade level or above - 58.0 percent | 56.5 percent in 2023

Third grade ELA

• Beginning Learners - 44.0 percent | 46.3 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 25.0 percent | 24.2 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 20.0 percent | 19.5 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 10.0 percent | 10.1 percent in 2023

Eighth grade GMAS

This past spring, 2,530 SCCPSS eighth graders took the GMAS tests. Their results show significant percentage point improvement over last year's eighth graders in both Reading Status and ELA. However, more than one-third of eighth graders are still not reading on grade level.

Eighth grade Reading Status

• Below grade level - 37.2 percent | 43.9 percent in 2023
• At grade level or above - 62.8 percent | 56.1 percent in 2023

Eighth grade ELA

• Beginning Learners - 31.0 percent | 39.6 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 35.7 percent | 34.3 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 25.5 percent | 21.8 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 7.8 percent | 4.3 percent in 2023

It is worth noting that the combined results for "% Developing Learner & Above" for eighth graders increased by almost nine points moving from 60.4 percent in 2023 to 69.0 percent this past spring.

Eighth grade Science

Fifth through eighth graders also take an EOG assessment for Science.

As Blanco noted in the press release, the only GMAS performance decline for SCCPSS came within middle grade Science scores, which fell "just under 3 points" compared to last year.

At the eighth grade level, the decline is more stark as 34.6 percent of students scored within "% Developing & Above" in 2024 while 40.5 percent of students met that marker last year. That is a 5.9 point year-over-year decrease in performance from a student body that is about to start high school this week.

• Beginning Learners - 65.4 percent | 59.5 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 18.7 percent | 23.2 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 13.0 percent | 14.3 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 2.9 percent | 3.0 percent in 2023

Eighth grade Social Studies

Georgia eighth grades additionally take Social Studies assessments. Here are the results for SCCPSS's eight graders.

• Beginning Learners - 42.5 percent | 45.6 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 32.7 percent | 34.0 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 20.9 percent | 16.6 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 4.0 percent | 3.7 percent in 2023

Eighth through 12th grade EOC results

High school students do not take summative EOG assessments like elementary and middle school students.

Instead, ninth through 12th graders (and some eighth graders in advanced courses) complete the EOC assessments, which focus on U.S. History, Biology, American Literature and Composition, and Algebra. Some students took EOC assessments at the end of the Winter term. Others took them at the end of the Spring term.

Here's the full-year EOC assessment results:

Reading Status

• Below grade level - 38.2 percent | 38.7 percent in 2023
• At grade level or above - 61.8 percent | 61.3 percent in 2023

American Literature and Composition

• Beginning Learners - 30.0 percent | 32.0 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 35.4 percent | 37.1 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 28.7 percent | 27.7 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 5.8 percent | 3.2 percent in 2023

Biology

• Beginning Learners - 34.5 percent | 35.9 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 26.3 percent | 26.1 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 30.6 percent | 28.7 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 8.5 percent | 9.2 percent in 2023

U.S. History

• Beginning Learners - 32.0 percent | 35.9 percent in 2023
• Developing Learners - 31.6 percent | 31.5 percent in 2023
• Proficient Learners - 26.9 percent | 26.5 percent in 2023
• Distinguished Learners - 9.4 percent | 6.2 percent in 2023

Blanco's statement acknowledge that SCCPSS Content Mastery scores fell below the state numbers, but "gains did outpace those of the state."  More data will be forthcoming from the district at upcoming school board meetings.

With many of SCCPSS's initiatives to improve literacy remain in the early stages (such as LETRS training for all elementary-level teachers), significantly improved GMAS Reading and ELA performance continues to be a work-in-progress.

Joseph Schwartzburt is the education and workforce development reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at JSchwartzburt@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: GMAS results are in!: More than 1/3 of 3rd and 8th graders still not reading at grade level