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Charles County Public Schools reports mixed winter iReady results; district urges family engagement
Summary
District officials presented winter iReady reading and math results and said younger students show larger COVID-era learning drops; schools are expanding targeted interventions and family outreach to accelerate catch-up.
Charles County Public Schools Superintendent Maria Navarro and district staff briefed the Board of Education on March 11 on winter iReady reading and math results, saying the district has seen modest winter-to-winter growth overall but that younger grade cohorts remain the furthest behind their pre-pandemic medians.
District staff told the board that nationally iReady data show students who were in the earliest grades during the pandemic have had the hardest time catching up, and Charles County’s local results follow that pattern in some grades while exceeding it in others. “We’re here today to give you an update on the I Ready, reading and math scores for the winter testing period,” Chief of Teaching and Learning Kevin Lowndes said as the presentation began.
Navarro and Lowndes said the district made gains in several elementary grades this winter and highlighted a six-point increase in fifth-grade on-grade or above percentages in math (from 26% to 32%). The district emphasized work underway to translate assessment results into classroom practice: instructional specialists are conducting learning walks with school teams; math and reading resource teachers provide follow-up coaching; and the district added targeted iReady interventions such as “standards mastery” for math and a “fluency in flight” intervention for reading.
Lowndes described national and local patterns: older elementary cohorts and some upper elementary grades have recovered to or beyond pre-COVID medians, while many students who began kindergarten or first grade in 2020–2021 have seen persistent declines. “Those students that started out in kindergarten—actually, as compared to the median score prior to COVID—actually have decreased in their scores,” he said. He added that the district has been recognized for “positive direction” among elementary schools.
Board members pressed staff for clearer, parent-facing guidance. Board member Lisonbee Thomas urged the district to ‘‘demystify’’ reports for parents and suggested a social-media and school-night push so families know which assessments and growth goals matter and how to act on them. Navarro said staff will add a slide listing approved Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions to district parent materials and post approved interventions to the CCPS website so families know the district-standard options and how the options are monitored.
District staff said several measures are used to judge interventions’ effectiveness: iReady growth, common-assessment scores, and program-specific metrics. For students multiple grades behind, Navarro reiterated that accelerating learning requires more instructional time and that the district has prioritized extended-learning funds—already allocated by the board—to target students at least two grade levels behind.
Board members and parents asked for more detail at the school level, especially about why first grade in some cases fell and why middle-school math growth has been flat. Lowndes said first-grade declines have been associated with increased behavior needs in some classrooms and that district teams are coaching teachers on classroom management and incentive structures as part of targeted support. Middle-school math has prompted review of interventions used in middle grades; the district said it is evaluating whether different or additional supports are needed at that level.
Navarro asked parents and the community to take the district strategic planning survey (open through March 21) and encouraged participation in upcoming engagement sessions; she said the strategic plan subcommittee will review survey results before the board considers a new plan through 2029.
The district said it will bring additional information to the board and publish materials for families explaining iReady reports, growth goals, and approved interventions. Staff recommended posting a short set of parent-facing materials showing: how iReady scoring maps to grade-level expectations, what growth and stretch-growth goals mean for students who are behind, and the approved Tier 2/Tier 3 interventions that schools use and how the district monitors them.
The presentation and ensuing Q&A underscored the district’s move from system-level data to school- and family-facing explanations and targeted intervention reviews expected in coming weeks.
