Innovation schools saw some of the largest gains on ISTEP in Indianapolis Public Schools. Here are the schools that had big changes.

When ISTEP scores are released each year, buried in the rankings of the highest and lowest scoring schools is another story — schools that have made significant progress or seen precipitous drops.

So this year, we’re focusing on the schools with the largest changes in passing rates on the math and English tests for 3-8 grades. Changing tests scores can be driven by many factors beyond how much students learn, but they offer a hint at which schools are going through big shifts.

In IPS, several traditional neighborhood schools made the top of the list. But many of the schools that saw the biggest gains in passing rates were innovation schools, which the district began creating two years ago. The schools are managed by outside charter operators or nonprofits, but they are still considered part of the district. The strong gains in passing rates are one of the first indications that the controversial strategy could pay off for the district.