Summary:
The Prairie Grove School District in Arkansas serves 2,259 students across four schools—Prairie Grove Elementary School (PK-3), Prairie Grove Middle School (4-6), Prairie Grove Junior High School (7-8), and Prairie Grove High School (9-12)—and is highly rated, ranking 28th out of 251 districts in the state (89th percentile) with a 4-star rating.
Standout schools include Prairie Grove Junior High School, which excels in Algebra with 84.6% proficiency—nearly double the district average and more than double the state average—and has the highest per-student spending ($11,641) and a low student-teacher ratio of 13.7:1. In contrast, Prairie Grove High School struggles in Algebra (34.5% proficiency) despite high spending ($11,365 per student) and the best student-teacher ratio (8.9:1), though it ranks 41st out of 293 high schools (86th percentile) and boasts a 92.9% graduation rate. Prairie Grove Elementary School is the only school outperforming the district average in all four core subjects (ELA, Reading, Math, Science) and showed remarkable year-over-year improvement, with ELA proficiency jumping from 41.7% to 50.3%. Science is a district-wide strength, with all schools significantly exceeding the state average of 44%, led by Prairie Grove Middle School at 62.8%.
Key takeaways include an "Algebra paradox" where Junior High students achieve high proficiency but High School students drop sharply, suggesting a need for curriculum alignment. Resource allocation varies widely, with higher spending at the Junior High and High School not always translating to better test scores. Additionally, a "middle school slump" in ELA and Reading proficiency from elementary to middle school indicates a need for targeted literacy support in grades 4-8. Overall, the district shows strong performance in Science and elementary improvement, but faces challenges in math continuity and literacy transitions.
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