ADE Proposes New School Letter Grade Calculations

PCSSD

April 10, 2025

LITTLE ROCK — During a State Board of Education work session today, the Arkansas Department of Education presented a new proposal for calculating school grades. The proposed formula simplifies the previous complex formula while still emphasizing academic outcomes, annual student progress, and workforce preparedness.

“We are pleased to recommend a revised formula that focuses on three key areas of student progress: academics, growth, and readiness,” ADE Secretary Jacob Oliva said. “The previous formula was confusing and complex and was not aligned with measuring true student progress. Thanks to the thousands of educators, district leaders, and technical experts for their input on this formula that better represents student outcomes.”

New Accountability Formula

The new accountability formula factors in results of the Arkansas Teaching, Learning, and Assessment System (ATLAS), a new statewide assessment system that was administered for the first time to students last spring. Year one results were released in October.

The new accountability formula will focus on the following:

  • Achievement — the percent of students who met or exceeded grade-level expectations in each of the tested areas (English Language Arts, math, and science).

  • Growth — the expected progress that an individual student makes over a school year based on previous years’ data, as all students are expected to make continuous academic gains.

  • Readiness — factors in graduation rates as well as students who are graduating with a diploma of merit or distinction. Learn more about Success Ready Pathways at https://dcte.ade.arkansas.gov/

    Page/CareerReadiness.

Next Steps

The department will promulgate rules and will release official letter grades for both schools and districts for the 2024-2025 school year by late summer. The release will include an easier-to-use website, so all stakeholders can navigate the information in a clear manner.

For more information about Arkansas’ accountability system, visit https://dese.ade.arkansas.gov/Offices/public-school-accountability.

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