How Sarasota and Manatee counties stack up in this year's statewide test scores

Sarasota County again saw mixed results as the Florida Department of Education released school district test scores Thursday for its new Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) and other end-of-course assessments for the 2022-23 school year. Math and reading scores stayed the same from the last school year, and science and civics scores were down.

Manatee County saw scores fall across the board except for math, which stayed the same, and Biology end of course, which rose by one percentage point.

The FAST testing marks a change from the previous Florida Standards Assessment. While data was presented in the same format as previous years, comparisons of scores between the FSA and FAST may not be precise.

Test scores have become a focus of school district activists, many of whom point to falling reading scores in Sarasota County. Many advocated for the removal of the previous Sarasota superintendent Brennan Asplen due to falling test scores, among other reasons.

Now, the incoming Sarasota and Manatee superintendents Terrence Connor and Jason Wysong, respectively, face a public expecting increased achievement.

While testing scores were released, overall district grades from the state were not yet available.

Here was how Sarasota and Manatee Counties scored this year:

Sarasota County test scores

Reading scores for third-graders in Sarasota stayed the same from the previous school year, with 61% reading at or above their grade level. The percentage was down two points from two years ago, following a trend in falling reading scores across the state that many have attributed to COVID-19 and distance learning.

Sarasota's reading achievement was eleven percentage points higher than the statewide average of 50%, and the district was tied for fourth in the state behind St. Johns, Nassau and Baker counties.

In math, Sarasota County maintained its achievement of 66% of students tested scoring at or above grade level. The mark was well above the statewide average of 56% and ranks Sarasota County as tied for seventh in the state in math achievement.

Sarasota County saw mixed results in science achievement. Fifth-grade science scores skyrocketed nine percentage points from 58% to 67% compared to last school year. However, eighth-grade scores fell one percentage point to 55%. The statewide averages for fifth and eighth-grade science were 51% and 47%, respectively.

Biology EOC scores rose two percentage points to 72%, which was nine percentage points higher than the statewide average.

Civics scores in the district fell three percentage points to 80%, which was the same as the fall in the statewide average. Statewide, 66% of students scored a three or above on the Civics EOC exam.

U.S. History EOC achievement stayed the same compared to last year in Sarasota County with 72% of students scoring a three or higher on the exam. Statewide, only 62% of students scored three or above, which was a fall of three percentage points.

Manatee County scores

Manatee County third-grade reading scores fell three percentage points to 47%, which ranked the district as tied for 17th in the state. The district was three percentage points under the statewide average of 50%.

Math scores were the only metric not to drop compared to the previous year for Manatee County, instead maintaining 59% as its percentage of students achieving at or above grade level. The district's math scores were three percentage points higher than the statewide average of 56%.

Fifth-grade science scores fell two percentage points to 49%, while eighth-grade scores fell one percentage point to 45%. The district was two percentage points below the statewide average for both fifth grade and eighth grade.

New superintendent: Hillsborough's Terrence Connor selected as new Sarasota School Board superintendent

More: Far-right groups 'actively working' to replace Karen Rose on Sarasota School Board

Biology EOC scores rose one percentage point to 63%, which was the same as the statewide average.

Manatee County Civics EOC achievement fell five percentage points to 69%, which was still three percentage points higher than the statewide average. The district's U.S. History EOC achievement fell by six percentage points to 58%, four percentage points lower than the statewide average.

Follow Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Steven Walker on Twitter at @swalker_7. He can be reached at sbwalker@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Florida releases Sarasota and Manatee test scores for 2022-23