Sippican School Principal Lyn Rivet is proud of Sippican School students’ performance on the new MCAS 2.0 results from last year, and Rivet reviewed the data with the equally proud Marion School Committee on November 29.
With 99 to 100%participation on the standardized test, Sippican School was already ahead of the state average.
“That’s a big point of proud,” said Rivet right off the bat.
Grade 5 science results showed that students scored above state average in both the proficient and advanced categories, resulting from the school’s focus on science advancement, Rivet said.
The school will advance further this year with the use of an enrichment teacher and cross-curriculum opportunities to stretch innovation and increase STEM/STEAM hands-on opportunities to propel achievement, guided by an emphasis on computer science
In Grades 3 through 6 English Language Arts, Rivet reported that the school as a whole performed very well compared to the state in meeting the expectations and exceeding the expectations in ELA.
A point of pride, Rivet said, was the school’s average score of 504.9 in this area, which is above the 500 point threshold of the state test.
Grades 3, 4, and 6 exceeded a 60% student growth level in ELA, and Grade 5 was just at that percentile.
The entire school in ELA exceeded the state across all standards, Rivet added, with Grades 4 and 5 exceeding the state in reading anchor studies.
In math, Grades 3 through 6, “Our students again,” Rivet said, “Very, very strong again…”
Points of pride: all grades scored an average of over 500 points, with 60% of the school either meeting or exceeding expectations.
“Students across all grade levels exceeded the state across nearly all standards,” said Rivet, “In many cases greater by ten points.”
Student growth in Grades 5 and 6 exceeded 60% or higher.
Rivet said the school administration would continue to analyze data and apply it to instruction and the school’s response to intervention, and also consider future professional development to keep teacher training in these areas fresh.
“I definitely think it’s a point of pride having looked at many sets of MCAS data that Sippican overall is above the state average on this new state test because it definitely is measuring a different skill set than what the old MCAS had done,” said School Committee Chairman Christine Marcolini. “As usual, you guys are already completely on top of the data.”
Rivet added that in ELA, 31 students scored just ten points shy of meeting expectations, and in math, 21 students scored ten points or less from meeting expectations.
Superintendent Doug White commented that student growth reflected in the 60% range should be recognized, saying, “[Student growth] is even more important than a test score,” adding that it means students are learning more and growing individually.
“Great job,” said committee member Michelle Smith. “You should be commended. Congratulations.”
The next meeting of the Marion School Committee is scheduled for January 10 at 6:30 pm at the Sippican School community room.
Marion School Committee
By Jean Perry