2018 MCAS Scores Are In: Schools, Districts Graded In New System

Results of the 2018 MCAS test, a key guide to performance of the state's schools, have been released.

Thursday's release by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education is the first embodying the state's new accountability system, which shows that 14 percent of schools and 7 percent of school districts are classified as needing assistance, support or intervention. That's more than 230 schools and 30 districts across Massachusetts. See the districts classified as such here.

The good news under the accountability system is that 52 schools were recognized for high achievement, high growth or significantly exceeding their targets. See the schools that garnered recognition here.

State education officials said the accountability system is more comprehensive than the previous system because it takes into account more than just test scores. It also considers other measures of student achievement, including high school completion rates, English proficiency, chronic absenteeism and numbers of students taking advanced coursework.

>>>Patch will have focused looks at your school district's MCAS performance Thursday and Friday. Subscribe to your local Patch for the latest.

Thursday's scores also featured the second year of "next-generation" results for students in grades 3-8, as well as the last year of the traditional "legacy" test scores for 10th-grade students.

The next-generation tests are graded in four categories: exceeding expectations, meeting expectations, partially meeting expectations and not meeting expectations. These tests are taken mostly online, and have generally more challenging questions than the written legacy exams.

State officials said this year's next-generation scores would be used as a baseline for future comparison and warned against comparing them to the legacy versions.

"The changes in this year’s MCAS results for grades 3 through 8 varied by grade level when compared to 2017," Education Secretary James Peyser said. "This is still a new assessment, based on recently revised curriculum frameworks, and as such, it will take time for the results to stabilize into a reliable baseline against which real improvement can be measured."

Overall, the next-generation results were up slightly from last year, though only about half of students across the state met or exceeded expectations. There was a slight downturn in math scores, with about 48 percent making the mark.

Eleven percent of students did not meet expectations in English and 12 percent in math.

Tenth-grade students were the last to take the legacy MCAS tests in 2018. Statewide results saw a 1 percent decrease for students who scored "proficient" or higher in English language arts (90 percent this year), math (78 percent) and science and technology/engineering (73 percent).

Three percent of 10th-grade students taking the legacy tests for English received a "warning" or "failing" as did 8 percent for math and 5 percent for science.

High school students will get next-generation testing in English and math next spring, but the minimum passing level won't change until at least the class of 2023.

The standards for the next-generation's "meeting expectations" rating are higher than the legacy's proficient level. Partially for that reason, the next-generation and legacy MCAS scores should not be compared, the officials said.

Most schools and districts were not designated as needing assistance or intervention, according to the accountability system.

"The new accountability system is a complex measure of how schools and districts are improving, and I am glad that the commissioner and DESE are taking a year to analyze this new system before making any new designations of underperformance," said Thomas Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents.

>>>Patch will have focused looks at your school district's MCAS performance Thursday and Friday. Subscribe to your local Patch for the latest.

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