TOWSON, MD. – Baltimore County Public Schools experienced smaller one-year (2012 to 2013) student performance declines than statewide averages, according to 2013 Maryland School Assessment (MSA) test scores released today by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). While results declined in elementary reading and mathematics, BCPS middle school reading performance improved.
The percentage of BCPS elementary students scoring proficient or advanced in reading decreased 1.5 percentage points, from 90.9% to 89.4%, while math performance dropped 2.8 percentage points, from 90.8% to 88%. Statewide performance fell by 2.4 percentage points in reading and 4.1 percentage points in math.
At the BCPS middle school level, reading performance increased 0.5 percentage points from 81.7% to 82.2%, while math scores decreased 2.8 percentage points from 74% to 71.2%. In comparison, statewide middle school performance improved 1.3 percentage points in reading and dropped 4.5 percentage points in math.
While performance of BCPS subgroups decreased in reading and math at the elementary school level, progress was achieved at the middle school level. Middle school reading performance rose in all racial/ethnic subgroups with Hispanic students demonstrating the largest increase of 1.6 percentage points. Notably, middle school English language learners showed an increase of 13.1 percentage points in reading proficiency and an increase of 1 percentage point in math. Middle school students eligible for free and reduced-price meals (FARMS) also demonstrated an increase of 0.8 percentage points in reading.
The Maryland State Department of Education has suggested several reasons for the statewide declines in MSA scores, including misalignment between the MSA and new curricula aligned to the Common Core State Standards; elimination of the Modified MSA resulting in inclusion of more special education students in the pool of students taking the regular MSA; decreased morale due to plans to tie teacher and principal evaluations to student test scores; high staff turnover; and fewer resources for public education.
“We take any drop in student achievement in test scores seriously. However, this year our focus shifted to implementing the more rigorous Common Core State Standards,” said BCPS Superintendent Dallas Dance. “The Common Core State Standards are not aligned to MSA tests; therefore, the taught curriculum was not the tested curriculum and this led to a decrease in student test scores but not necessarily a decrease in a student’s understanding of the material.” Dr. Dance emphasized.
The Maryland School Assessment is a mandatory assessment of reading and mathematics achievement that is administered each spring to students in grades 3 through 8. State, BCPS, and school-level MSA data are available on the Maryland State Department of Education's report card website at www.mdreportcard.org.
MSDE uses MSA data to set annual schoolwide and subgroup improvement targets for student achievement, achievement gap reduction, and student growth. From these three indicators, each school receives a School Progress Index score, which evaluates progress in improving student performance. The Maryland State Department of Education has not yet reported School Progress Index scores for 2013.
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