Summary:
In zip code 76821, there is one elementary school, Ballinger Elementary, serving grades PK through 5 with 377 students in the Ballinger Independent School District (Isd), an area where over 73% of students are economically disadvantaged.
Ballinger Elementary shows a positive overall trend, improving its state ranking from the 25th percentile (1 star) in 2023-2024 to the 33rd percentile (2 stars) in 2025-2026. The school's standout strength is 5th-grade Mathematics, where 60% of students were proficient in 2025-2026, outperforming the state average by 12.62 percentage points. However, significant challenges exist in early grades: 3rd-grade Reading proficiency is alarmingly low at 27.66% (23.42 points below the state), and 3rd-grade Math is at 23.4% (20.93 points below the state). The school also has a favorable student-teacher ratio of 12.8:1, suggesting smaller class sizes that could support targeted instruction.
A key takeaway is the dramatic disparity in math performance between grade levels, with 5th graders excelling while 3rd and 4th graders lag far behind, possibly indicating an effective upper-grade math program or recent curriculum changes. Reading proficiency is consistently below state averages across all grades, pointing to a systemic need for early literacy intervention. Despite serving a high-need population, the school's improving ranking and per-student spending of $12,291 provide resources that, if effectively directed, could help close these achievement gaps. Science appears to be a hidden strength, with 5th-grade scores 9.21 points above the state average in the most recent data.
Thank you for your feedback!