Savannah-Chatham County School District not satisfied with academic progress

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The Savannah-Chatham County Public School District says this year’s test scores have some red flags. 

“I want to emphasize that I’m not satisfied with our current results, nor am I declaring success of any kind. Today is about highlighting the progress we have made in certain areas, as well as the areas where we have not seen the progress we intend to make,” said Superintendent Denis Watts.

The big picture from 2024-25 end-of-year testing shows the district made progress in both science and math, but across the board students are struggling with English-language arts and history. 

Data also shows reading levels are a hit or miss area. 

The district also released its cohort data that shows the progress from each grade as they’ve progressed through the system.

A big area of concern is 6th grade, where less than half the students reported to read at or above their grade level. 

“These are students who may have missed out on some of that support as a result of Covid, so we have to take a look back at those cohorts and see the year in which they may have missed some of the structured learning experiences,” said Chief Academic Officer Derrick Butler.

To compensate for this, the district is launching its Adolescent Literacy Training. This will provide help for not just students, but school faculty on how best to make sure students who are falling behind can catch back up.

“As I transitioned into the district, with confidence I can express that literacy was established as our North Star,” said Dr. Watts.

This was Superintendent Watts’ second year at the helm of the district, and she says changes she’s made will take time to show their full effect.