Analysis of State Test Performance: Marlinton Elementary School, Pocahontas County, and West Virginia (2020-2024)
I. Executive Summary
This report provides an analysis of state assessment performance data for Marlinton Elementary School, Pocahontas County Schools, and the state of West Virginia, focusing on Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science over the last four available academic years (approximately 2020-2021 to 2023-2024). The primary objective is to assess Marlinton Elementary's performance trends by grade level, contextualized by district and state data.
A critical finding of this analysis is the unavailability of specific, year-by-year, grade-level assessment data for Marlinton Elementary School within the examined information sources. This absence prevents the detailed, school-specific, longitudinal analysis initially requested. Consequently, this report focuses on presenting available information for the school, alongside a more detailed examination of district and state-level trends, and provides guidance on obtaining the necessary school-level data.
Available third-party information for Marlinton Elementary School indicates an aggregated student proficiency of 47% in both math and reading, with the school receiving a 'B-' grade from Niche.com.1 However, this information is not official West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) data, lacks specific academic year references, and is not disaggregated by grade level.
Pocahontas County Schools (grades 3-8 aggregate) experienced a decline in Mathematics and Reading performance from 2019 to 2022. While Mathematics showed some recovery by 2024, Reading performance remained significantly low, with both subjects generally performing below the 2019 national average.2 The district faces significant accountability challenges, highlighted by the WVBE's declaration of a "State of Emergency" in February 2025. This declaration stemmed from issues identified at the high school level concerning counseling programs, academic scheduling, leadership capacity, school safety, and the provision of special education services.3 District-wide attendance issues have also been noted.5
West Virginia state-level trends (grades 3-8 aggregate) mirror those of Pocahontas County, with a decline in Mathematics and Reading proficiency between 2019 and 2022. Similar to the district, Mathematics saw some recovery by 2024, while Reading performance continued to lag.2 The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted assessments, leading to no statewide summative tests in 2020 and necessitating cautious interpretation of 2021 results.6 Data on Science performance at a detailed, trendable level for the district and state was not available in the primary comparative reports examined.
The overarching conclusion is that a granular performance analysis for Marlinton Elementary School cannot be completed with the current information. The primary recommendation is for stakeholders to pursue official data channels, such as the WVDE's ZoomWV portal (particularly its supplemental report features) and the Centralized Reporting System, to acquire the detailed school-level assessment results necessary for informed decision-making and targeted improvement efforts.
II. Introduction: Navigating West Virginia's School Assessment and Accountability Landscape
Understanding school performance in West Virginia requires familiarity with its statewide assessment system, the data portals used for reporting, and various contextual factors that influence educational outcomes and data interpretation. This framework is essential for analyzing the performance of Marlinton Elementary School.
A. Overview of West Virginia's Assessment System
West Virginia's public education system relies on a structured series of assessments to measure student learning and school effectiveness.
Primary Assessments: The cornerstone of this system for grades 3-8 is the West Virginia General Summative Assessment (WVGSA). For students in Grade 11, the SAT School Day serves as the general summative assessment.6 For students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, the West Virginia Alternate Summative Assessment (WVASA) is administered in grades 3-8 and 11, aligning with their instruction under alternate academic achievement standards.7 These assessments are mandated by both federal and state law.6
Subjects Tested: The WVGSA typically covers English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics for grades 3-8, and Science for grades 5 and 8.9 The SAT School Day assesses ELA and Mathematics. This aligns with the requested subjects for analysis.
Purpose of Assessments: These statewide assessments serve multiple critical functions. They provide information on individual student performance, identify achievement gaps, and inform instructional adjustments. At a broader level, results are used by schools and districts to guide improvement efforts and by the state to shape educational policy and recovery initiatives, particularly in response to disruptions like the COVID-19 pandemic.6 The overarching goal is to foster a stronger and more equitable education system.8
B. Key Data Portals and Reporting Mechanisms
The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) provides several platforms and reports for accessing and understanding school performance data.
ZoomWV Data Dashboard: This is promoted as West Virginia's primary public portal for pre-K through grade 12 educational data. It offers a variety of information, including state assessment results, enrollment figures, and graduation rates at the state, district, and school levels.7 The ZoomWV system is designed to allow stakeholders to monitor and understand student needs and successes.11 A June 2022 update to the West Virginia Board of Education (WVBE) specifically mentioned that the ZoomWV State Assessment Results Dashboard provides access to "Supplemental Excel files containing complete assessment performance and proficiency rate data at the school, district, and state levels overall and by grade level and subgroup".12 This indicates that the granular data necessary for detailed school-level analysis, as requested for Marlinton Elementary, may be available in downloadable formats through this specific channel.
West Virginia Schools Balanced Scorecard: This system provides annual accountability ratings for all public schools in the state. It measures student progress and school performance across multiple indicators, not limited to academic achievement.10 The indicators include academic achievement in mathematics and ELA, four-year adjusted cohort graduation rates, progress in achieving English language proficiency for English learners, student attendance rates (percentage of students absent for more than 10% of instructional days), and student behavior (percentage of students with zero out-of-school suspensions).15 These scorecards offer a holistic view of a school's performance and are part of West Virginia's School Accountability System (WVSAS).10
Centralized Reporting System (CRS): The CRS is a web-based application that offers more detailed access to WVGSA results for authorized users. Access is tiered, allowing state, district, school, and teacher-level views of data.9 Importantly, the CRS allows for the download of data files in formats such as Excel, CSV, or TXT, which can include scale scores, reporting category scores, demographic data, and achievement levels.9 This system is a key resource for educators and administrators needing in-depth assessment data for analysis and planning.
Family Portal: To enhance parental engagement, the WVDE provides a Family Portal where parents and guardians can access their child's individual WVGSA results. This includes detailed performance information in ELA, math, and science, along with Lexile and Quantile measures and individual video score reports.16 Access to this portal requires a unique student access code provided by the school or county.17 While designed for individual student reporting, it represents another avenue for data dissemination.
C. Contextual Factors Affecting School Performance Data
Several factors must be considered when analyzing West Virginia school performance data from recent years.
COVID-19 Pandemic Impact: The pandemic profoundly affected education and assessment.
No statewide summative assessments were administered in West Virginia during the spring of 2020.6 This creates a data gap for one of the "last four years" under review.
The 2021 assessment results require cautious interpretation. The WVDE noted that participation rates may have varied across districts and schools due to health and safety concerns or other factors related to in-person testing during the pandemic.6 Learning disruptions were also widespread.
In response to the pandemic's impact, West Virginia updated its long-term academic achievement goals. The 2020-2021 school year proficiency rates for Mathematics and ELA were established as a new baseline, and the timeline to achieve the goal of halving the gap to 100% proficiency was extended to the 2035-2036 school year.15 This adjustment is critical for understanding current performance against revised state expectations.
Data Reporting Timelines and Availability: School report cards, which include indicators of student performance, are mandated to be prepared and disseminated prior to January 1st of each year.19 More specific to assessment results, the Pocahontas County Schools website announced that student assessment results for the 2024 WVGSA were available in the online Family Portal as of September 16, 2024.16 This suggests that the most recent comprehensive data would typically become fully processed and available in the fall following spring assessments.
Full Academic Year (FAY) Students: Assessment results reported by the WVDE are often based on the performance of students who were enrolled for a "full academic year." This is typically defined as being enrolled for at least 135 non-consecutive days during the school year and being present in the end-of-year enrollment file.6 This definition is important as it determines which students' scores are included in a school's or district's aggregate performance metrics.
III. Marlinton Elementary School: Performance Profile
Marlinton Elementary School serves students in the early and primary grades within Pocahontas County. Understanding its specific performance requires accessing detailed, official assessment data, which presents a challenge based on the currently available information.
A. School Overview
Marlinton Elementary School is a public school located in Marlinton, West Virginia, operating under the Pocahontas County Schools district.1
Grades Served: The school accommodates students from Pre-Kindergarten (PK) through Grade 5.1 State summative assessments in West Virginia typically begin in Grade 3.
Enrollment: The school has an enrollment of 203 students.1
Student-Teacher Ratio: The student-teacher ratio is reported as 12 to 1.1
B. Available Aggregated Performance Data (Non-Official/Third-Party)
The only readily available performance data specific to Marlinton Elementary within the examined sources comes from Niche.com, a third-party website that compiles school statistics and reviews.
Niche.com Data: According to Niche.com, 47% of students at Marlinton Elementary are at least proficient in mathematics, and 47% are at least proficient in reading. The website assigns Marlinton Elementary an overall grade of B-.1
It is crucial to contextualize this information:
Source: This data is not directly from the WVDE or official school report cards. Third-party data may use different methodologies or timeframes for aggregation.
Timeliness and Specificity: The specific academic year(s) to which these proficiency percentages pertain are not provided in the source. Furthermore, the data is aggregated for the school and not broken down by individual grade levels (e.g., Grade 3, Grade 4, Grade 5), nor does it include Science performance, as requested by the user query.
Utility: While this information offers a singular data point regarding the school's perceived performance, its utility for a detailed, longitudinal, grade-specific analysis is very limited. It should be viewed with considerable caution and not as a substitute for official WVDE assessment results.
Table 1: Marlinton Elementary School - Available Aggregated Proficiency Data (Source: Niche.com)
Note: Data from Niche.com.1 The specific year(s) and grade levels for this proficiency data are not detailed in the source material. This is third-party data and should be interpreted with caution.
C. Explicit Acknowledgment of Data Limitations for Granular Analysis
A thorough review of the provided information sources reveals a significant data gap concerning Marlinton Elementary School. The specific, year-by-year, grade-level performance data (such as percentage proficient or average scale scores) for Marlinton Elementary in Language Arts, Mathematics, and Science for the requested four-year period (approximately 2020-2021 to 2023-2024) is not contained within these materials.
This absence directly impacts the ability to fulfill the core request for a detailed analysis of Marlinton Elementary's performance trends. Attempts to locate this specific data through direct browsing of WVDE links mentioned in the research (such as general data portal pages or the Balanced Scorecard dashboard entry point) were either unsuccessful due to inaccessibility of the links at the time of review or did not yield the required granular, longitudinal school-level results.21 For example, searches on the WV Balanced Scorecard interface did not return the specific school-level, subject-specific, grade-level data for multiple years needed for this analysis.22
Guidance for Data Acquisition:
Given this critical data limitation, the following steps are recommended for stakeholders seeking to obtain the necessary official information for Marlinton Elementary:
WVDE ZoomWV Portal (Supplemental Reports): The most promising avenue appears to be the "Supplemental Reports" section of the ZoomWV State Assessment Results Dashboard. As documented in a June 2022 WVBE update, this section is intended to provide downloadable Excel files containing comprehensive assessment performance and proficiency rate data at the school, district, and state levels, broken down by grade level and subgroup.12 Stakeholders should navigate to the ZoomWV portal (accessible via wvde.us) and specifically look for these downloadable data files.
Centralized Reporting System (CRS): If the user is an authorized school or district employee (e.g., principal, teacher, district administrator), they should have access to the Centralized Reporting System (CRS). This system allows for the download of detailed assessment data files in Excel, CSV, or TXT formats, which include various score types and demographic information.9 This is likely the most direct source for detailed school-level data for internal use.
Direct Contact with School/District: Contacting Marlinton Elementary School administration or the Pocahontas County Schools district office directly is advisable. They may be able to provide official school report cards, data extracts from the CRS, or guide users to the correct data sources.
ZoomWV Data Requests: For data not readily available through public reports, the WVDE offers a formal process to request specific education information via a "ZoomWV Data Request" form.10 Student data is typically provided only in aggregate and/or de-identified formats to comply with FERPA and WVBE Policy 4350.23
Family Portal (for Parents/Guardians): Parents and guardians can access their individual child's WVGSA results through the Family Portal using a unique access code provided by the school.16 While this provides individual data, awareness of this portal is important for parental engagement.
Without access to these official, granular data sources for Marlinton Elementary, the remainder of this report will focus on providing contextual performance information from Pocahontas County Schools and the state of West Virginia.
IV. Pocahontas County Schools: District Performance Context
Pocahontas County Schools provides the broader educational environment for Marlinton Elementary. Understanding district-level performance trends and challenges is crucial for contextualizing the potential academic landscape of its individual schools.
A. District Overview
Pocahontas County Schools is a public school district located in Buckeye, WV.24
Student Population: The district serves 921 students in grades PK through K-12.24
Student-Teacher Ratio: The district-wide student-teacher ratio is 11 to 1.24
Niche.com Profile: The third-party website Niche.com assigns Pocahontas County Schools an overall grade of C+. It also reports that, according to state test scores (undated in the snippet), 36% of students in the district are at least proficient in math, and 38% are at least proficient in reading.24 As with the Marlinton Elementary Niche data, these figures should be treated with caution due to their third-party origin and lack of specific dating and granularity.
B. Trends in Language Arts (Grades 3-8 Aggregate - Education Recovery Scorecard Data)
Data from the Education Recovery Scorecard, which measures performance in "Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average," provides insight into recent ELA trends for Pocahontas County Schools (grades 3-8 combined). A negative value indicates performance below the 2019 national average.
2019 Average: Data for Pocahontas County Schools' reading performance in 2019 was not available (N/A) in the specific tables from the Education Recovery Scorecard.2
2022 Average: Students in Pocahontas County performed, on average, -1.23 grade equivalents below the 2019 national average in Reading.2 This suggests that, in 2022, the average student in grades 3-8 within the district was functioning more than a full grade level behind where their peers were nationally before the pandemic.
2024 Average: Performance slightly worsened to -1.27 grade equivalents below the 2019 national average.2
Change 2022-2024: This represents a decline of -0.04 grade equivalents.2
The ELA data for Pocahontas County Schools indicates a significant deficit in reading skills compared to a national pre-pandemic benchmark. More concerning is the lack of improvement between 2022 and 2024; instead, there was a slight further decline. This stagnation at a low performance level points to persistent challenges in literacy instruction or student learning within the district.
C. Trends in Mathematics (Grades 3-8 Aggregate - Education Recovery Scorecard Data)
The same Education Recovery Scorecard provides data for Mathematics performance in Pocahontas County Schools (grades 3-8 combined), also in "Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average."
2019 Average: Students performed at -0.81 grade equivalents below the 2019 national average.2
2022 Average: Performance declined significantly to -1.41 grade equivalents.2 This drop of -0.60 grade equivalents from 2019 to 2022 indicates a substantial impact, likely exacerbated by the pandemic, on students' mathematical understanding.
2024 Average: There was some recovery, with performance improving to -1.05 grade equivalents.2
Change 2019-2022: A decline of -0.60 grade equivalents.2
Change 2022-2024: An improvement of +0.36 grade equivalents.2
Overall Change 2019-2024: Despite the recent improvement, the district's math performance in 2024 was still -0.23 grade equivalents lower than its own 2019 level and more than a full grade equivalent below the 2019 national average.2
The mathematics data reveals a sharp decline in performance from 2019 to 2022, followed by a partial recovery by 2024. While the upward trend between 2022 and 2024 is a positive sign, suggesting that some interventions or efforts may be yielding results, the district had not returned to its pre-pandemic performance levels relative to the national average and still faced a considerable deficit.
D. Science Performance
The detailed Education Recovery Scorecard reports for Pocahontas County Schools, which provided the ELA and Math trend data, do not include Science performance data.2 Similarly, the Niche.com overview for the district does not specify Science proficiency rates.24 As a result, an analysis of district-wide Science trends comparable to that for ELA and Math is not possible with the provided information. Science assessments are part of the WVGSA for grades 5 and 8 9, so this data should exist within the WVDE systems, but it is not present in the summarized comparative reports available.
E. Comparison with State Averages (from Education Recovery Scorecard)
Comparing Pocahontas County Schools' performance to West Virginia state averages provides further context. The data below is for grades 3-8 aggregate, in "Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average".2
Mathematics:
In 2024, Pocahontas County Schools' average was -1.05 grade equivalents.
The West Virginia state average in 2024 was -1.22 grade equivalents. Pocahontas County's aggregate math performance in 2024 was slightly better (by 0.17 grade equivalents) than the overall state average. While both the district and state were significantly below the 2019 national average, the district was not performing worse than the state context in this subject. This might suggest that either local initiatives in Pocahontas County had a slightly more positive impact, or that challenges in math were marginally less severe than in some other parts of the state.
Reading (ELA):
In 2024, Pocahontas County Schools' average was -1.27 grade equivalents.
The West Virginia state average in 2024 was also -1.27 grade equivalents. In Reading, Pocahontas County's aggregate performance in 2024 was identical to the state average. This indicates that the significant challenges in literacy faced by the district are reflective of a broader, statewide issue.
Table 2: Pocahontas County Schools vs. West Virginia State Average - Math & Reading Performance (Grades 3-8 Aggregate, Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average)
Source: Education Recovery Scorecard data.2 "N/A" indicates data not available in the cited source for that specific entry.
F. Relevant District-Wide Factors and Accountability
Beyond test scores, several significant factors related to district operations and accountability have emerged for Pocahontas County Schools, potentially impacting all educational levels.
State of Emergency Declaration:
In February 2025, the West Virginia Board of Education (WVBE) declared a State of Emergency for Pocahontas County Schools. This decision followed a Special Circumstance Review of Pocahontas County High School conducted by the WVDE in October 2024 at the request of the county superintendent.3
The review identified several critical deficiencies at the high school level 3:
Absence of a process for developing student Personal Education Plans (PEPs).
Failure to prepare student schedules in advance of the 2024-2025 school year.
A lack of expertise among school leaders and insufficient access to the West Virginia Education Information System (WVEIS) for essential tasks like transcribing grades.
Inadequate mentorship and support for the new high school principal.
Insufficient security measures leading to inadequate school safety.
Non-compliance of some special education processes and procedures with state or federal standards.
While these findings were specific to the high school review, they raise serious questions about potentially systemic issues within the district's central administration and its capacity to support all schools. Deficiencies in areas like WVEIS expertise, leadership support, and adherence to special education protocols could have ripple effects across all grade levels, including elementary schools like Marlinton. For instance, a lack of district-level WVEIS proficiency could hinder the ability of all schools to access and utilize student data effectively for improvement planning.
Balanced Scorecard Issues:
An October 2024 Pocahontas County Board of Education meeting discussed the district's annual Balanced Scorecard results. It was noted that student attendance was marked as "needing support," meaning the district did not meet state standards and had not shown improvement for two consecutive years.5 The superintendent acknowledged that attendance was likely an issue in every county.
Additionally, three areas were indicated as needing assistance: board member effectiveness, special education, and preschool programs.5 These concerns, particularly regarding special education and attendance, predate the State of Emergency declaration and highlight ongoing challenges that directly affect student learning opportunities and outcomes. Chronic absenteeism, if prevalent across the district, would inevitably impact academic performance at all schools.Historical Math Performance (Older Data):
A report from the Success For All Foundation, dating back to around 2015-2016, mentioned that two middle schools in Pocahontas County (Green Bank Middle School and Marlinton Middle School) had adopted the PowerTeaching Math program. At that time, these schools reportedly significantly outscored the state of West Virginia in the percentage of students proficient in mathematics (an average of 40% proficient in the Pocahontas County middle schools involved, compared to a state average of 25% on the then-new WVGSA).25 While this data is historical and pertains to middle schools, it suggests a period where specific programs may have contributed to relative strength in mathematics within the district. This contrasts with the more recent, broader declines observed in the Education Recovery Scorecard data, emphasizing that district performance can fluctuate and past successes require sustained effort and adaptation to maintain.
These district-level factors paint a picture of a system facing considerable operational and academic challenges. Such an environment can create obstacles for individual schools striving for improvement.
V. West Virginia State-Level Academic Trends
Statewide academic trends provide the broadest context for evaluating the performance of Pocahontas County Schools and, by extension, Marlinton Elementary. West Virginia, like many states, has faced significant educational challenges, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A. Statewide Performance in Language Arts (Grades 3-8 Aggregate - Education Recovery Scorecard Data)
State-level ELA performance, measured in "Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average" for grades 3-8 combined, shows a concerning trend.2
2019 Average: West Virginia students performed at -0.52 grade equivalents below the 2019 national average.
2022 Average: Performance declined substantially to -1.22 grade equivalents. This drop of -0.69 grade equivalents highlights the severe impact on literacy skills across the state during this period.
2024 Average: Performance saw a slight further dip to -1.27 grade equivalents.
Change 2019-2022: A decline of -0.69 grade equivalents.
Change 2022-2024: A further slight decline of -0.05 grade equivalents.
Overall Change 2019-2024: A total decline of -0.74 grade equivalents.
The statewide data for ELA indicates a significant and persistent lag in reading proficiency. The period between 2019 and 2022 saw a dramatic decrease in performance relative to the national pre-pandemic benchmark. Critically, unlike mathematics, there was no discernible recovery in ELA scores between 2022 and 2024; instead, performance remained stagnant at a very low level or slightly worsened. This points to a statewide crisis in reading achievement that requires urgent and sustained attention.
B. Statewide Performance in Mathematics (Grades 3-8 Aggregate - Education Recovery Scorecard Data)
State-level Mathematics performance for grades 3-8 combined, also in "Grade Equivalents Relative to 2019 National Average," shows a similar initial decline but some signs of recovery.2
2019 Average: West Virginia students performed at -0.77 grade equivalents below the 2019 national average.2
2022 Average: Performance dropped sharply to -1.55 grade equivalents. This represents a decline of -0.79 grade equivalents from the 2019 state level.
2024 Average: There was a notable improvement to -1.22 grade equivalents.
Change 2019-2022: A decline of -0.79 grade equivalents.
Change 2022-2024: An improvement of +0.34 grade equivalents.
Overall Change 2019-2024: Despite the recent gains, statewide math performance in 2024 was still -0.45 grade equivalents lower than its 2019 level.
Similar to ELA, statewide mathematics performance experienced a significant downturn between 2019 and 2022. However, unlike ELA, math scores showed a degree of recovery between 2022 and 2024. While this rebound is a positive development, the state's overall math proficiency in 2024 remained considerably below its own pre-pandemic levels and significantly lagged the 2019 national average.
C. Statewide Science Performance
The Education Recovery Scorecard, a key source for recent ELA and Math trend data, does not provide comparable statewide Science trend data for 2019, 2022, and 2024.2 While the 2021 WVGSA results release document 6 discussed overall ELA and Math proficiency for 2021 compared to 2019, it did not feature Science prominently in its summary comparative graphics. Science is assessed as part of the WVGSA in grades 5 and 8 9, and data is available through the Centralized Reporting System.9 However, a robust analysis of statewide Science trends over the last four years, directly comparable to the ELA and Math data from the Recovery Scorecard, is not possible with the information provided.
D. State Accountability Goals and Pandemic Impact
The WVDE has established long-term goals for academic achievement, which were adjusted following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Long-Term Goals: Originally, West Virginia's accountability system aimed to reduce the gap between the 2016-2017 baseline proficiency rates and 100% proficiency by half, by the end of the 2029-2030 school year.15 Due to the pandemic's impact, these goals were updated for Mathematics and ELA in 2022. The 2020-2021 school year proficiency rates were adopted as the new baseline, and the timeline to achieve the "half the distance to 100%" goal was extended to the 2035-2036 school year.15
The 2020-2021 statewide Math proficiency rate (new baseline) was 28.1%. The 2035-2036 long-term goal is 64.0%.
The 2020-2021 statewide ELA proficiency rate (new baseline) was 40.0%. The 2035-2036 long-term goal is 70.0%. These revised goals reflect an acknowledgment of the learning loss experienced and set ambitious, albeit long-term, targets for improvement. Each school in the state has its own specific long-term goals and annual targets based on its individual baseline scores.15
Education Recovery Efforts: An overview of the Harvard Education Recovery Scorecard shared with the WVBE in February 2025 (likely referring to data up to the 2023-2024 school year, though the document mentions "2025 Education Recovery Scorecard") indicated that West Virginia's academic recovery accelerated between 2022 and 2024. Nationally, West Virginia ranked 6th in growth for math and 11th in growth for reading during this two-year period.3
However, when considering the longer period from 2019 to 2022, which includes the peak of pandemic disruptions, West Virginia ranked 22nd in math recovery and a concerning 42nd in reading recovery nationally.3 This underscores the significant ground lost, particularly in reading, and emphasizes the need for sustained, in-person, and uninterrupted instruction. While recent progress is encouraging, the cumulative impact of the pandemic means the state still faces a substantial challenge in reaching its pre-pandemic relative standing and its long-term proficiency goals.
VI. Analysis and Comparative Insights: Connecting the Dots
Synthesizing the available data for Pocahontas County Schools and West Virginia reveals shared challenges and offers a basis for cautious inferences regarding the potential context for Marlinton Elementary School.
A. Interpreting Pocahontas County's Performance in State Context
Pocahontas County Schools' academic performance, when viewed against statewide averages, presents a mixed picture.
In Mathematics, the district's 2024 aggregate score of -1.05 grade equivalents was slightly better than the state average of -1.22 grade equivalents.2 This suggests that while the district faces substantial mathematical deficits, its challenges are not necessarily more severe than the statewide norm; in fact, it performed marginally better. This could imply that either local instructional strategies in math within Pocahontas County have had a relatively positive impact, or that some factors ameliorated the decline seen elsewhere in the state.
In Reading (ELA), Pocahontas County's 2024 aggregate score of -1.27 grade equivalents was identical to the state average.2 This alignment indicates that the district's significant struggles in literacy are characteristic of a widespread problem across West Virginia. Addressing reading deficiencies in Pocahontas County will likely require tackling issues that are pervasive statewide, potentially benefiting from state-level initiatives and support.
Both the district and the state exhibited similar overall trajectories: significant declines in both subjects from 2019 to 2022, followed by some recovery in Mathematics by 2024, while Reading performance remained stagnant or continued a slight decline. This parallel pattern suggests that overarching factors, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, statewide curriculum frameworks, teacher professional development programs, or resource allocation policies, are likely exerting a strong influence on academic outcomes at both the district and state levels.
B. Potential Implications of District-Level Challenges for Marlinton Elementary
The significant operational and accountability issues identified within Pocahontas County Schools could have tangible implications for its individual schools, including Marlinton Elementary.
Leadership, Data Management, and Support: The findings from the WVDE's Special Circumstance Review, which led to the "State of Emergency," pointed to critical weaknesses in areas such as WVEIS expertise, student scheduling, development of Personal Education Plans (PEPs), and support for school administrators at the high school level.3 If such fundamental operational capacities are compromised at the district level, it is plausible that the support provided to all schools, including elementary schools, is affected. For example, if the district office lacks robust WVEIS expertise, Marlinton Elementary might not receive the timely or well-analyzed data it needs for its own school improvement planning. This could directly contribute to the difficulty in obtaining the specific, granular data requested for this report. Effective school improvement is heavily reliant on accurate data and the capacity to use it; deficiencies at the district level in data management and strategic support can create significant hurdles for individual schools.
Special Education Services: The recurrent identification of special education as an area "needing assistance" in the district's Balanced Scorecard 5 and as a key finding in the Special Circumstance Review 3 is particularly concerning for an elementary school. Elementary grades are crucial for early identification of students with disabilities and the provision of timely, effective interventions. If district-level special education processes, oversight, or resource allocation are deficient, students with disabilities at Marlinton Elementary may not receive the support services they are entitled to, which would directly impact their academic progress and the school's overall performance metrics.
Chronic Absenteeism: The district's acknowledgment of chronic absenteeism as a significant issue 5 is another factor with direct implications for Marlinton Elementary. High rates of student absenteeism at the elementary level can severely disrupt the learning process for individual students and the classroom environment as a whole, leading to lower academic achievement and test scores. Addressing absenteeism effectively requires a coordinated effort between the school and the district.
These district-level challenges suggest an environment where individual schools might face additional obstacles in achieving their educational goals due to limitations in central support, data systems, or specialized services.
C. What Can Be Inferred About Marlinton Elementary (Cautiously)?
Given the absence of specific official performance data for Marlinton Elementary, any inferences must be made with extreme caution.
Context of Academic Challenge: Considering the significant performance declines observed at both the district and state levels, particularly between 2019 and 2022, it is highly probable that Marlinton Elementary also experienced academic setbacks in ELA and Math during this period. The pervasive nature of these trends makes it unlikely that the school would have been entirely insulated from these effects.
Potential for Higher Relative Performance (Highly Speculative): The third-party data from Niche.com indicated 47% proficiency in both reading and math for Marlinton Elementary 1, while reporting district-wide figures of 38% in reading and 36% in math for Pocahontas County Schools.24 If Niche.com's methodology for data collection and aggregation is consistent across the school and district profiles, these figures could tentatively suggest that Marlinton Elementary might perform somewhat better than the overall district average. However, this is a very weak signal. This data is undated, from a non-official source, and aggregated across grades. It cannot be taken as evidence of current, grade-specific performance and should primarily serve as a point that could be investigated further if and when official, granular data for Marlinton Elementary becomes available. Many factors, including differing student demographics or specific school-based initiatives not captured in the available information, could contribute to such a variance.
Science Performance Remains Unknown: Due to the lack of detailed Science performance data in the comparative reports at both the district and state levels, there is no basis for inferring Marlinton Elementary's performance in this subject.
Ultimately, without access to official, detailed, and longitudinal assessment data for Marlinton Elementary, these remain largely informed hypotheses rather than confirmed findings. The priority must be on obtaining such data.
VII. Key Findings, Data Gaps, and Recommendations
This analysis has examined the available information on state test performance for Marlinton Elementary School, Pocahontas County Schools, and the state of West Virginia. The findings highlight significant data limitations for the specific school in question, alongside broader academic and operational challenges at the district and state levels.
A. Recap of Key Findings
Marlinton Elementary School:
The central finding is the absence of official, grade-level specific, multi-year assessment data for ELA, Mathematics, and Science for Marlinton Elementary within the examined information sources.
The only school-specific academic data found is from a third-party website (Niche.com), which reports aggregated, undated proficiency rates of 47% in reading and 47% in math.1 This data is insufficient for the detailed analysis requested.
Pocahontas County Schools:
Aggregate data for Grades 3-8 shows significant performance deficits in Mathematics and Reading compared to 2019 national averages. Mathematics scores showed some recovery between 2022 and 2024, but Reading performance did not improve and remained a critical concern.2
In 2024, the district's aggregate Math performance was slightly above the state average, while its Reading performance was identical to the state average.2
The district is facing severe accountability challenges, evidenced by a WVBE-declared "State of Emergency" in February 2025. This was due to systemic issues identified in leadership, data management (WVEIS expertise), special education processes, student scheduling, and school safety, primarily stemming from a review of the high school.3
Chronic absenteeism and challenges in board member effectiveness, special education, and preschool programs were also noted as areas needing assistance in the district's Balanced Scorecard.5
West Virginia State:
Statewide data for Grades 3-8 mirrors district trends, with significant performance deficits in Mathematics and Reading. Partial recovery was observed in Mathematics by 2024, but Reading proficiency continued to be a major challenge.2
The COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of 2020 statewide assessments and a resetting of baseline academic achievement goals, now extending to 2035-2036.6
While West Virginia showed notable growth in math and reading recovery nationally between 2022-2024, the overall recovery from pre-pandemic levels (2019-2022) ranked lower, especially in Reading, indicating the depth of the initial learning loss.3
B. Summary of Critical Data Gaps
Primary Gap: The most significant data gap is the absence of official, longitudinal (last four academic years), grade-level specific assessment data (percentage proficient or scale scores) for Marlinton Elementary School in ELA, Mathematics, and Science. This prevents a direct response to the core of the user's query.
Science Data Gap: There is a lack of detailed, trendable Science performance data for Pocahontas County Schools and West Virginia state within the key comparative Education Recovery Scorecard reports.2 While Science is assessed, its trend analysis is hampered by its absence in these specific summaries.
Granular District Data: Although the Education Recovery Scorecard provides aggregate data for grades 3-8 for 2019, 2022, and 2024, it does not offer a year-by-year breakdown for all requested "last four years" or proficiency by individual elementary grade levels for Pocahontas County Schools.
C. Recommendations for Stakeholders (Marlinton Elementary & Pocahontas County)
Addressing the identified data gaps and performance challenges requires concerted action. The following recommendations are provided for stakeholders at Marlinton Elementary and within Pocahontas County Schools:
Prioritize Obtaining Granular School-Level Data for Marlinton Elementary:
Action: School leadership at Marlinton Elementary, the school's Local School Improvement Council (LSIC), and Pocahontas County Schools district officials should actively pursue the acquisition of detailed assessment data for Marlinton Elementary. This should cover the past four available academic years (likely 2020-2021, 2021-2022, 2022-2023, and 2023-2024) and be disaggregated by grade level (3, 4, and 5) for ELA, Mathematics, and Science.
Primary Sources to Explore:
WVDE ZoomWV Portal – Supplemental Reports: Investigate the "Supplemental Reports" section of the ZoomWV State Assessment Results Dashboard for downloadable Excel or CSV files containing school-level data, as indicated by WVDE documentation.12
Centralized Reporting System (CRS): Authorized school and district personnel should utilize their access to the CRS to download detailed data files for Marlinton Elementary.9
Formal ZoomWV Data Request: If the required data is not publicly accessible in the necessary format, submit a formal data request to the WVDE.10
Rationale: Without this specific data, targeted school improvement planning, resource allocation, and progress monitoring for Marlinton Elementary remain significantly hindered. This data is foundational for understanding specific strengths and weaknesses at the school.
Address District-Level Systemic Issues Identified in the "State of Emergency":
Action: The leadership of Pocahontas County Schools must urgently develop and implement a comprehensive action plan to address all findings from the WVDE Special Circumstance Review.3 This includes, but is not limited to, establishing robust processes for Personal Education Plans (PEPs), ensuring timely and accurate student scheduling, providing critical training and access related to WVEIS for all relevant school and district leaders, implementing effective mentorship programs for new administrators, strengthening school safety and security measures, and ensuring full compliance with state and federal special education requirements.
Rationale: These systemic weaknesses at the district level likely impact the operational effectiveness and educational quality of all schools, including Marlinton Elementary. Addressing them is crucial for creating a supportive and functional environment for school improvement. Enhanced WVEIS expertise, for example, will directly support the data acquisition efforts outlined in Recommendation 1.
Intensify Focus on Improving Reading/ELA Performance:
Action: Given the persistently low and declining performance in Reading/ELA at both district and state levels 2, a concerted and urgent effort is required. This should involve a thorough review of the ELA curriculum and instructional practices at Marlinton Elementary and across the district, implementation of evidence-based literacy strategies, targeted professional development for teachers in the science of reading and literacy instruction, and robust early intervention programs for struggling readers.
Rationale: Reading proficiency is foundational to all other academic success. The lack of recovery and continued low performance in this area represents a critical educational challenge that must be a top priority.
Sustain and Build Upon Mathematics Recovery Momentum:
Action: Analyze the factors and strategies that contributed to the partial recovery in mathematics scores observed between 2022 and 2024 in Pocahontas County and statewide.2 Ensure these effective strategies are understood, continued, and strengthened at Marlinton Elementary and other schools in the district.
Rationale: Identifying what worked to initiate this recovery can help sustain positive trends and inform strategies in other academic areas, although it is important to recognize that math scores still remain well below desired levels.
Investigate and Address Chronic Absenteeism:
Action: Implement comprehensive strategies at both the district and school levels to understand the root causes of chronic absenteeism identified in the district's Balanced Scorecard.5 Develop and execute targeted interventions to improve student attendance, potentially leveraging resources and guidance from WVDE's participation in the Attendance Works national initiative.14
Rationale: Students must be present in school to learn effectively. High rates of absenteeism undermine all other educational efforts and significantly impact academic outcomes.
Ensure Robust Science Instruction Despite Current Data Gaps:
Action: While awaiting more detailed and trendable Science assessment data, Marlinton Elementary should ensure that its science curriculum is fully aligned with West Virginia state standards and that engaging, inquiry-based, and effective science instruction is consistently occurring in the relevant grades (primarily Grade 5 at the elementary level).
Rationale: The absence of readily available comparative trend data in the examined reports should not lead to a de-emphasis of science education. Science is a core academic subject critical for student development.
Actively Leverage State Support and Resources:
Action: Pocahontas County Schools leadership should proactively engage with the WVDE to utilize all available support, expertise, and resources offered in response to the "State of Emergency" declaration and for addressing other areas identified as "needing assistance" on the district's Balanced Scorecard.3
Rationale: The WVDE can provide valuable external perspectives, technical assistance, and resources to help the district navigate its challenges and implement effective improvement strategies.
By systematically pursuing these recommendations, stakeholders in Pocahontas County and at Marlinton Elementary can work towards obtaining the data necessary for informed decision-making and implementing targeted strategies to improve student outcomes.
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