Diving deeper into the Ohio 2025 school report cards

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- NBC4 Investigates is taking a deeper dive into the state’s school rating system.

On Monday, the state Department of Education and Workforce released grades for each Ohio school district, and some historically high-performing districts saw their ratings drop.

We’re seeing early literacy scores take a hit in many districts. 

The state sets the standards as schools submit their data and receive the grades. This system is supposed to show the community information about school performance, but we found, sometimes it doesn't paint the full picture.

Dublin, Upper Arlington, Hilliard and Worthington school districts are ones we’re used to hearing are high performers, but on this year’s state report card, they all lost some ground.

Dublin School District dropped from the highest overall rating, five stars, down to four-and-a- half. Part of the reason was the early literacy component. That measures reading improvement and proficiency for students in kindergarten through third grade.

It takes into account three measures: how many third grade students score proficient or higher on the state reading segment, how many students moved into fourth grade, and how well schools are providing support to struggling readers.

Dublin’s early literacy score dropped by seven points from four to three stars, which the district said it expected due to a shift in assessment tools last year.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Dublin schools said: “This year’s report shows a dip in Early Literacy, moving from 4 stars to 3 stars. This decline was anticipated due to a planned shift in assessment tools. Last year, the district transitioned from reporting the MAP Growth to mCLASS DIBELS 8, which better aligns with Ohio’s K-3 Early Foundational Skills standards. Because the State Report Card measures multiple years of data, this change temporarily lowered the rating. However, moving forward, DIBELS 8 will provide more accurate, actionable insights into student reading growth. This shift supports the district’s Journey 2030 Early Literacy Goal and will strengthen instructional decisions in the years ahead. At the same time, Dublin City Schools is in the midst of implementing Savvas myView Literacy as the district’s core K-5 English Language Arts resource. Grounded in the Science of Reading and Writing, myView Literacy is a structured, interactive program designed to inspire readers and writers through research-based practices and authentic literature, including mentor texts. This school year marks the first full year of implementation across all elementary schools. As our student population continues to grow and diversify, our focus is on differentiating instruction to meet the needs of every learner — including English Learners, gifted students, students receiving special education services, and more. Every student’s literacy journey is unique, and while data provides valuable insights, it does not always tell the whole story. Our commitment is to ensure that instruction reflects the strengths and needs of each child, steering away from a one-size-fits-all approach and embracing the diversity that makes Dublin City Schools strong."

Other typically high-performing districts saw decreases in the early literacy category as well, including Upper Arlington down by nearly 10 points, Hilliard by 1.3 and Worthington by three points.

Overall ratings for each of these districts, except for UA, dropped by half a star. We reached out to UA, Hilliard and Worthington School Districts but have not heard back. If we do hear back, we will update their full statements in this story.