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Racine Unified reports mixed gains and persistent flat performance in reading, writing and social studies
Summary
District monitoring reports showed flat outcomes across several measures but pockets of growth: early-childhood reading benchmarks improved, Black students saw gains in ACT writing and social studies showed small increases for some groups; district leaders cited attendance, social-emotional needs and attention-span changes as contributors.
At the work session the board reviewed district monitoring reports for reading, writing and social studies. Miss Decker presented the consolidated R2 monitoring slides and highlighted areas of both concern and targeted progress.
Reading: Miss Decker scored reading as "improvement needed" in most grades except early childhood, and said oral-reading-fluency (ORF) progress monitoring showed gains in early grades. She noted MAP testing was phased out for grades 6–8 and that the district uses Amira for some assessments. For early childhood and kindergarten benchmarks the district reported higher benchmark percentages (for example, early benchmarks around 86% meeting standards versus previous lower figures). Miss Decker emphasized that while some groups show growth, overall mid-grade and upper-grade scores remain flat.
Writing: District writing results were described as "reasonable progress." Miss Decker reported specific grade-level shifts in proficiency from quarter 1 to quarter 4 — for example, roughly a 17.8% increase in Grade 2 proficiency and about 12% movement in Grade 4; Grades 6 and 7 saw roughly 22% movement. The district expanded its Think SRSD (science-of-writing) pilot by seven schools this school year and plans professional learning and calibration for teachers.
Social studies: Miss Decker again categorized social studies as "improvement needed," noting persistent achievement gaps. She said Black students and students of two or more races experienced the largest percentage increases in some measures (approximately 4% and 7%, respectively), while students with disabilities saw about a 2% increase.
Board discussion probed whether science-of-reading training addresses comprehension; Miss Decker said the required modules cover phonics, morphology, vocabulary, fluency and writing and emphasized cross-disciplinary expectations for teachers. Trustees raised concerns about participation rates (noting that assessment participation drops in later quarters) and about how nonparticipation may skew results; Miss Decker acknowledged those concerns and said some decline in engagement may relate to older students’ outside work and other factors.
Trustees and staff also discussed systemic factors that may depress growth: changing attention spans linked to device use, increased social-emotional needs, chronic absenteeism, and limits on collaborative planning time for teachers. Miss Decker said the district continues capacity-building work (Act 20 training and other modules) and is considering diversified interventions beyond Read 180 as it scales science-of-reading practices into middle grades.
Miss Decker repeatedly framed the results as signs of progress in pockets but emphasized the need for continued targeted interventions, additional teacher collaboration time and ongoing professional learning. The report will drive follow-up items, including monthly school achievement reports for Mitchell K–8 and Gifford K–8.
