All six Warren County High School principals were in attendance Tuesday night at a School Board workshop to discuss the low results from the school’s state report card.

The annual report card is compiled using data from the statewide student assessments, now known as TNReady. This rating system provides a score of 0.0 to 4.0 on each indicator, with 4.0 being the highest.

According to TNReady test results, WCHS rated a 0.1 in academic achievement in 2017-18.

WCHS executive principal Jimmy Walker stood before the School Board to explain the data is invalid.

“We knew within 45 minutes when the test went into a freeze mode, and our kids sat there for two hours and 30 minutes, that we were going to have problems with our data,” said Walker. “I can honestly tell you that morning our teachers and our kids were ready and if we had taken it pencil and paper, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

Director of Schools Bobby Cox shared his research on the data using changes between 2016-17 and 2017-18 in the Upper Cumberland. He said of the 17 schools in the region, eight schools were above WCHS and eight were below when it came to changes in test scores.

Cox said there are only three schools in the Upper Cumberland that had positive change – Pickett, DeKalb, and Van Buren County.

Walker also explained to the School Board that for the past three years, the current seniors have had problems with testing.

“They’ve never had any skin in the game because they’ve been held harmless,” said Walker. “It’s not going to count on their report card.”

Added teacher Marla Cantrell, “I am going to beg you please do whatever it takes so that we don’t issue report cards until those test scores come in. When they hear that it doesn’t count, our students don’t care and don’t try.”

Although Walker said the score is not indicative of where they are at WCHS, he promised the School Board they will do better. Each board member was provided a thick binder with WCHS’s school improvement plan which included student info, a pacing guide, and remediation.

Walker encouraged board members to visit WCHS and stressed teachers need validation now more than ever.

“I’ll say this and then I’ll shut up. What’s alarming is that teachers are quitting at an all-time rate right now,” said Walker. “My first year, I had to fill 22 positions. Last year, it was 14 and I don’t have a pool to pick from. That’s why, if I can get someone locally, who is invested in our community and we can nurture and build them before they quit, then we have a chance.”

At next month’s School Board meeting, members will deliberate on whether to count TNReady scores in student grades and whether to print report cards or make them only available online.