Tullahoma City Schools saw tremendous growth when the state released the Tennessee Value-Added
Assessment (TVAAS) data Wednesday.
This past spring marked the first time students across the state returned to end-of-year assessments after
sudden school closures in 2020. The most recent test results will serve as a baseline for the district to
determine students’ strong points and what areas need focus and improvement.
“In the face of a challenging year, to see and have this type of growth that we as a district had, it is absolutely amazing,” said TCS Director of Schools, Dr. Catherine Stephens. “To place these results in context, scoring a three demonstrates one year of growth in a subject area. Our staff and students worked so hard throughout this past school year, and that effort was reflected in the release of the recent TVAAS data, which highlights fives and significant growth from our students!”
TVAAS measures students’ academic growth over time rather than student proficiency on the Tennessee
Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) and End of Course (EOC) examinations. TVAAS helps
educators identify best practices, implement programs that best meet the needs of their students, and make informed decisions about where to focus resources to ensure growth opportunities for all students.
When TVAAS results are released, growth is determined on a scale of 1-5, with five being the highest level of improvement.
Across all grade levels, TCS had significant improvements in all subject areas with 5s across the board. As a
district, Tullahoma City Schools received a 5 in composite, literacy, numeracy and literacy & numeracy.
Tullahoma students saw exponential growth in all subjects on the EOC exams at the high school level.
According to TVAAS data, THS students received 5s in algebra I and II, geometry, biology and U.S. history.
Additionally, they received 4s in English I and II.
“A 4 represents more than a year’s worth of growth, while a 5 is a significant year of growth,” said TCS Director of Curriculum Susan Fanning. “To see this amount of 5s across the district, particularly in a difficult year with the ongoing pandemic, is tremendous.”
While there are several areas highlighted in Wednesday’s results, there are also subjects where district
improvement can occur. At the sixth-grade level, TCS students received a 5 in math, 4 in ELA, 3 in science and 1 in social studies. Seventh graders received a five in math, 2 in ELA and 1s on science and social studies.
Eighth-grade students received a 5 in ELA, 3 in social studies, 2 in math and 1 in science.
“Tullahoma City Schools had a 97.4 percent participation rate in these end-of-year assessments, which was
higher than the state’s 95 percent rate and we are proud of that,” Dr. Stephens said. “While there are areas to celebrate, we certainly recognize there are opportunities to improve. Our teachers, instructional coaches and administrators will begin the work of analyzing these results to make appropriate instructional
decisions and meet our students’ needs as we continue forward reaching for success.”
THS students additionally saw growth in their ACT scores this past spring. High school students achieved 5s in composite, English, math and reading, while they also received a 4 in science/reasoning.
“As a whole, we are pleased with the success and the amount of growth that the TVAAS results show,” Dr.
Stephens said. “Our students and teachers deserve high praise for these results, as they put in the effort and work to see this successful outcome. Moving forward, we will use this data, along with other data sources, to continue to aid our students’ growth and development. TCS faculty and staff are continuing to work hard to ensure that the growth seen in the most recent results continues to occur.”
