All grade levels and Algebra I students at Lake Oconee Academy outperformed the state on the Math Milestones last year.
LOA’s instructional leadership team shared the data during the Board of Governors meeting on Oct. 7. The Georgia Department of Education had previously embargoed the data due to the implementation of new math standards.
Seventy-one percent of LOA’s algebra students (including eighth graders) earned proficient or distinguished status, surpassing the state’s 46 percent. In eighth grade, 55 percent of test-takers were proficient or distinguished learners, compared to the state’s 44 percent. Fifty-nine percent of seventh graders were proficient or above, compared to the state’s 38 percent.
According to the team, an area of focus is sixth-grade math to see more students grow. Forty-six percent of sixth graders scored proficient or above. While they surpassed the state’s 35 percent, LOA’s sixth-grade cohort had similar results as in fourth and fifth grade.
In 2021-22, 46 percent of the then-fourth graders were proficient or above; in 2022-23, the same students were at 49 percent. The team says they plan to target developing learners with high-impact tutoring during Titan Focus. They also plan to use peer modeling with other teachers to see successes and standards-based assessments throughout the year to ensure classroom assessments match Milestone rigor.
For fifth-grade math, 73 percent of test-takers scored proficient or distinguished status, far ahead of the state’s 41 percent. One-third of LOA’s fifth graders were distinguished learners, which the team called “phenomenal.” In fourth grade, 63 percent of students scored proficient or distinguished, outpacing the state’s 48 percent.
Sixty-two percent of third graders also scored proficient or distinguished, compared to the state’s 45 percent.
The team said LOA is “doing very, very well” compared to the state and other academically competitive schools. They said the goal is to continue to grow and keep moving students upward.
“I was very excited to get this data,” lead math teacher Danna Seigle said about the math results. “It just lets us know that we are doing good things already ... our kids are just going to continue to grow.”
The team also shared LOA has been named to the Advanced Placement (AP) School Honor Roll, which recognizes schools whose AP programs are broadening access to students and delivering great results.
The honor roll offers four levels of distinction: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. Schools are scored in three categories: college culture, credit, and optimization. LOA earned the gold distinction overall but scored platinum in two categories.
Seventy-two percent of last year’s graduating class took at least one AP exam in high school, which gave LOA gold in the culture category.
Sixty-four percent of the graduating class scored at least a three on an AP exam, surpassing the platinum level at 50 percent for the credit category.
Twenty-nine percent of the graduating class took at least five AP exams, including one in ninth or 10th grade, to surpass the platinum level of 15 percent for the optimization category.
LOA also recently received the AP Access Award, which is awarded to schools where the percentage of underrepresented/ low-income students accessing the school’s AP program is the same as or greater than that of those students in the school’s graduating class.
In other business, on Oct. 7, the board:
• Discussed options for completing a risk assessment and active shooter analysis to address vulnerabilities on LOA’s campus.
• Approved continuing discussions with Greene County Board of Education chairman Perry Lee regarding potential options for a new middle school at LOA.
• Approved an information security policy to protect LOA’s digital and human assets. The policy would include standards to regulate cybersecurity items like secure emails, account management, and network access.