How did BCSD fifth graders most recently test in "math?"

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the second of several articles that will take a closer look at the Baldwin County School District's most recent Georgia Milestones testing results, which were released to the public earlier this month.

Only 1-out-of-10 Baldwin County School District fifth graders were at least "proficient" in mathematics during the 2022-2023 school year, at least according to the results of the Georgia Milestones test.

Officially, 10.0 percent of BCSD fifth graders scored "proficient or better" in math on the Milestones test, while the other 90 percent of students finished as either "beginning learners" or "developing learners."

Out of the 157 Georgia "county school systems" listed in the data, Baldwin County finished in 149th place, which equates to the 5.3 percentile of Georgia county school systems. Also of note, all but two of the school systems that finished below Baldwin in fifth-grade math are relatively tiny – Warren (51 fifth graders), Hancock (49 fifth graders), Talbot (38 fifth graders), Stewart (24 fifth graders), Quitman (18 fifth graders), Dooley (182 fifth graders), Evans (227 fifth graders) and Baker (21) fifth graders) counties.

In other words, out of the 95 county school systems in Georgia to test at least 200 students, the Baldwin County School District finished in 94th place, ahead of only Evans County.

Here's how Baldwin's fifth-grade math scores compared to the school districts in next-door counties:

• Baldwin – 90 percent of students "not proficient in math" (149th in state)

• Hancock – 98 percent of students "not proficient in math" (156th in state)

• Jones – 56.4 percent of students "not proficient in math" (40th in state)

• Putnam – 73.5 percent of students "not proficient in math (72nd in state)

• Washington – 75.4 percent of students "not proficient in math" (109th in state)

• Wilkinson –87.9 percent of students "not proficient in math" (143rd in state)

In other words, fifth graders in the Putnam County School District last year were roughly three times more likely to be proficient in math than BCSD fifth graders, while Jones County School District students were more than four times as likely to be proficient in math as BCSD students.

The Georgia Milestones Test is administered each school year to public school students in grades 3-8. The results were released to the public over the weekend, and you can check out the data for yourself by CLICKING HERE.

Baldwin2k News chose to focus on fifth grade because it's the final year of elementary school.

According to the Georgia Department of Education's website, the "Georgia Milestones Assessment System is designed to provide information about how well students are mastering the state-adopted content standards in the core content areas of English language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies... The system is designed to send consistent signals about students' preparedness for the next level, be it the next grade, course, or endeavor, such as entering college or beginning a career after leaving the K-12 educational system."

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