The Commonwealth’s 2023 MCAS scores are in, and Marblehead’s school district saw encouraging numbers come in that may reflect some recovery from the learning loss suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Statewide, 42% of students in grades three through eight met or exceeded expectations in English language arts, 41% did so in math, and 41% did so in science. For 10th-grade students, 58%, 50%, and 47% of students met or exceeded expectations in those respective subjects.
Along with the scores statewide were accountability reports for the Commonwealth’s school districts with data ultimately quantified into a single number between 0 and 100%, with 75% or higher signifying that a district is meeting or exceeding targets.
This number, the criterion-referenced target percentage, measures each district’s and school’s progress toward improvement targets and combines multiple years of data related to achievement, growth, high-school completion, English-learner progress, advanced-coursework completion, and chronic absenteeism.
Marblehead performed better than the state averages in almost all categories. The district had more than 50% of students meeting or exceeding expectations in all three phases in both grades three through eight and 10th-grade scores. The district also saw a significant increase in performance from 2022 scores across all three categories in both grade level groups.
In a press release from Marblehead Public Schools, the district is optimistic that it is nearing the end of the pandemic-induced learning loss.
“The (MCAS) results from spring 2023 are promising,” the press release read. “The initial results indicate that the post-pandemic academic slide has ended and academic recovery is fully underway.”
In ELA, 11% of Marblehead students in grades 3-8 exceeded expectations, and 49% met expectations. 9% of those students exceeded expectations in both math and science, and met expectations in math and science at 50% and 46%, respectively.
32% partially met expectations in ELA, 33% did so in math, and 35% did so in science. Less than 10% of students did not meet expectations in ELA, math (both 8%), and science (9%).
Most notably, the 10th-grade group performed very well overall, with more than 75% of students meeting or exceeding expectations in all three categories: ELA (79%), math (77%), and science (76%).
According to the district, the high school showed double-digit percentage growth in proficiency ratings in ELA and math. The high school went from a 68% proficiency score in ELA in spring 2022 to 81% in spring 2023. In math, that score jumped from 59% to 78%.
Science had the highest percentage of students exceeding, with 24%, while math was third with 12%. ELA saw 23% of students exceed expectations.
When it came to meeting expectations, however, math saw 65% of students meet that standard, with ELA (56%) and science (52%) right behind. 18% of students partially met expectations in ELA, 21% did so in math, and 22% did so in science.
The percentage of students that did not meet expectations for all three categories was 3% or less.
In the press release, the district credited the improvements to its hard working staff, as well as new goals set forth across Marblehead Public Schools.
“We believe our academic growth is connected to the district-wide initiatives we have implemented and the dedication of
our staff to ensuring student success,” the press release read. “We are grateful for the tremendous support and effort of our school leaders, teachers, and staff who work very hard to support our students in achieving academic success.”
Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Julia Ferreira will be providing more information on MCAS results at a future School Committee meeting.