Springfield’s report card shows progress rising while early literacy falls
A grade freezes one moment, while progress follows the same students over time, and Springfield’s Ohio report card shows both pictures in a single document.
By
Hina Dinoo
In brief
- Tes separates achievement, measured against a standard, from progress, which is growth over time.
- Springfield City School District earned 2.5 stars overall on Ohio’s 2025-26 report card.
- The district rose from 2 to 3 stars in progress but stayed at 1 star in early literacy.
- Ohio’s scale runs from one star, needing substantial improvement, to five stars for top performance.
A single grade tells you where a student stands on one day. It does not tell you where that student began, how far they have travelled or what was learned on the way, according to Tes.
A snapshot versus a journey
Tes draws a clear line between two ideas. Achievement is attainment measured against a standard. Progress is growth over time: the development of knowledge, skills, understanding and confidence as learning unfolds.
The two can pull apart. A student may achieve highly without making meaningful progress, while another may make significant progress even though attainment stays below an expected benchmark. The same cohort shows both pictures. Its exam results reveal achievement, and the data on those same students across a term, semester or academic year reveals progress.
What progress data adds
Looking at growth can surface success that a grade alone hides. It can also flag high-achieving students who are coasting rather than advancing. Tes argues that this lets schools support all learners, not only those who struggle most.
It also comes with a condition. Tes says progress data should be a starting point for conversations and collaboration, not a basis for judging students or teachers.
How Ohio’s stars work
Ohio rates school districts on a scale of one to five stars. Three stars meet state standards, five stars represent top performance, and one star signals a need for substantial improvement. Overall ratings draw on several metrics: achievement, progress, gap closing, early literacy and graduation rates.
Springfield City School District earned 2.5 stars overall on the 2025-26 report card, as reported by the Springfield News-Sun. The district improved in 10 individual metrics but declined in early literacy and the four-year graduation rate. Superintendent Bob Hill said: “The report card confirms that the system is moving in the right direction.”
Springfield side by side
| Metric | Rating | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Progress | 3 stars, up from 2 | 12 of 14 schools earned 3 or 4 stars, seven of them 4 |
| Achievement | 2 stars, unchanged | Performance index up to 55.5% from 54.8% |
| Gap closing | Up from 2 stars | 35.8%, against 23.9% a year earlier |
| Early literacy | 1 star, unchanged | Scores fell from 53.1% to 34.8% |
“clearest academic priority”
Bob Hill, Superintendent, on early literacy
The contrast is the point. Growth and early reading sit in the same report yet tell different stories, and a single overall rating could not show that on its own.
Longer gains and next steps
Hill pointed to four-year gains that a single year’s grade would not capture:
- Attendance rose from 86.8% to 90.1%.
- Chronic absenteeism fell from 46.5% to 34.7%.
- English learners meeting growth or proficiency targets rose from 38.5% to 51.4%.
Hill also named the district’s next steps:
- Strengthen Tier 1 instruction, the core teaching all students receive in the general classroom.
- Accelerate foundational literacy.
- Preserve attendance gains.
- Use subgroup growth data to target support.
- Expand college and career pathways.
- Transfer the strongest growth-producing practices across schools.
He added that “2.5 stars is not the destination,” and that the district will treat the report card as “a set of improvement measures, not a finish line.”
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels
