Summary:
The Kaleva Norman Dickson School District has only one elementary school, KND Elementary, which serves students from grades K-6. The school has consistently struggled, ranking in the bottom quarter of Michigan elementary schools for the past three years. KND Elementary faces significant challenges, including low test scores, high chronic absenteeism, and a student population with a high percentage of economic disadvantage.
KND Elementary's performance on standardized tests, such as the M-Step, is well below the state averages across multiple grade levels and subject areas. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the percentage of students proficient or better in English Language Arts ranged from 20% to 23.4% across grades 3-6, compared to the state averages of 38.6% to 44.4%. The math proficiency rates were even lower, ranging from 6.38% to 38.5% for grades 3-6, compared to the state averages of 31.5% to 42.7%. Additionally, the school has a chronic absenteeism rate of 29.5%, which is quite high compared to the state average.
Despite the higher-than-average spending per student of $15,209 in the 2023-2024 school year, the school's performance remains significantly below the state and district averages. This suggests that the school may need to re-evaluate its resource allocation and implement more targeted, evidence-based strategies to support student learning and address the underlying challenges facing the school community.
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