See How Brick Schools Were Graded On New State Report

BRICK, NJ — The New Jersey Department of Education released grades for 2,100 schools across the state, including the 12 in the Brick Township School District.

The system introduced in 2018 grades every school on a scale of 1 to 100, and was created in response to the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), but educators have criticized the system as painting an incomplete picture of the quality of education a student is receiving.

The ratings for high schools are based on graduation and absenteeism rates and PARCC scores, while elementary and middle school scores are based on absenteeism, PARCC and student progress on PARCC tests, according to the state Department of Education.

"My concern is that these scores are not representing the student growth as indicated on school performance reports," Brick Township Superintendent Gerald Dalton said. "In our initial review of the performance reports, Brick students have demonstrated growth."

"Reports such as the one published (the state Department of Education grades) brings into question the purpose of standardized testing," Dalton said, noting that PARCC and how it is and has been implemented continue to be a source of controversy. The requirement to pass PARCC to receive a high school diploma was struck down by a New Jersey court last year, but the fight has continued.

The state Department of Education issued two sets of scores. One is the summative score, and the other is the summative percentile rating. Here are the scores for Brick's 12 schools:

SUMMATIVE SCORES

• 693. Midstreams Elementary School, 60.77
• 958. Lake Riviera Middle School, 53.05
• 1039. Herbertsville Elementary School, 50.55
• 1112. Veterans Memorial Middle School, 48.75
• 1167. Osbornville Elementary School, 46.88
• 1172. Warren H. Wolf Elementary School, 46.77
• 1210. Brick Township High School, 45.77
• 1266. Drum Point Road Elementary School, 44.07
• 1290. Veterans Memorial Elementary School, 43.46
• 1350. Brick Township Memorial High School, 41.80
• 1364. Lanes Mill Elementary School, 41.31
• 1714. Emma Havens Young Elementary School, 29.18

SUMMATIVE PERCENTILE RATINGS

• 676. Midstreams Elementary School, 67.65
• 952. Lake Riviera Middle School, 54.44
• 1039. Herbertsville Elementary School, 50.24
• 1115. Veterans Memorial Middle School, 46.62
• 1168. Osbornville Elementary School, 44.08
• 1173. Warren H. Wolf Elementary School, 43.84
• 1221. Brick Township High School, 41.55
• 1271. Drum Point Road Elementary School, 39.16
• 1296. Veterans Memorial Elementary School, 37.91
• 1317. Brick Township Memorial High School, 36.96
• 1372. Lanes Mill Elementary School, 34.30
• 1723. Emma Havens Young Elementary School, 17.48

Based on the reports, it appears that schools that finished with at least a 50 score could be considered average. Schools that finish in the top 20 percent are considered above average.

The "summative percentile rating" is assigned to schools that have grade 3 or older and aims to show how they compare to other high schools, middle and elementary schools. Those give elementary schools more weight in their scoring because they don't have the exact same criteria as high schools (like graduation rates).

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