Best Public Schools in China, TX

The city of China, Texas, is served by a single public elementary school, China Elementary, which is part of the highly rated Hardin-Jefferson Independent School District (ISD). This school enrolls approximately 600 students from Pre-Kindergarten through 5th grade, with a student-teacher ratio of 14.2 to 1 and a spending per student of $8,861. Over half of the students (51%) are economically disadvantaged, as indicated by eligibility for free or reduced lunch.

China Elementary presents a mixed performance profile. Its most notable strength is in 4th Grade Mathematics, where 58.43% of students were proficient in the 2025-2026 school year, outperforming both the district (55.98%) and the state (49.28%). However, this success is an anomaly, as the school underperforms in nearly every other tested subject and grade. For instance, 3rd Grade Mathematics proficiency has been persistently low, at just 38.14% in the most recent year, well below the district average of 54.46%. Reading scores are a systemic weakness, with all three tested grades (3rd, 4th, and 5th) falling below both district and state averages, with the gap widening to over 10 percentage points in 5th grade.

The school's overall state ranking has declined significantly, dropping from the 56th percentile (3 stars) in 2024-2025 to the 46th percentile (2 stars) in 2025-2026. This negative trend is highlighted by a nearly 10-point drop in 5th Grade Reading proficiency over the same period. A key paradox is that while the district ranks in the 78th percentile statewide, China Elementary lags behind its district peers in 8 out of 9 tested categories. This suggests other elementary schools within the Hardin-Jefferson ISD are performing much better. The school's standout 4th Grade Math results offer a potential blueprint for improvement, while the widespread challenge in Science (with only 28.71% proficiency) mirrors a state-level issue.