Rockport schools are 29 students above projection; MCAS shows strong third and fourth grades and a middle school gap

Rockport's schools have 620 students this fall, 29 more than the district's outside projection, Superintendent Mark Branco told the School Committee on Oct. 21. The committee also got its yearly look at MCAS results, which showed third and fourth graders ahead of the state and a wide gap in grades six through eight.

What happened

• Enrollment on Oct. 1, the state's count day, was 620 students, or 597 without preschool. The projection from NESDEC, the district's planning consultant, was 29 students lower.
• Third and fourth graders beat the state average in every tested subject. In grades six through eight, every subject but eighth grade science came in below the state. Tenth grade English and ninth grade physics were above the state.
• The committee approved the eighth grade trip to Washington, D.C., which costs families a little less than last year, and accepted a $500 gift from third grade families and about $2,000 in camera equipment.
• A parent asked the committee to have the district report how many minutes a day students in each grade spend on school issued screens before it writes its next technology plan.

Enrollment

Branco said the district will watch the numbers closely, since enrollment is falling across the state as families have fewer children. Not every school choice seat was filled this year, he said, but the share of students choosing into Rockport has stayed steady. The committee sets next year's school choice seats in February, based on middle school class sizes and staffing.

MCAS, grade by grade

The administrator who oversees the district's testing walked the committee through each grade's results and the cohort data that follows the same students year to year. Third graders had 53 percent meeting or exceeding expectations in English, 10 points above the state. Fourth graders posted a student growth percentile of 59, meaning they grew faster than 59 percent of students statewide who had scored the same the year before. Ninth graders had 59 percent meeting or exceeding in introductory physics, also 10 points above the state, and tenth graders had a math growth percentile of 61 after two years without a test.

Last year's fifth graders, now in sixth grade, dropped sharply in English, mostly in essays and written responses, she said, and middle school math results showed trouble with fractions, decimals and geometry. She said many middle school students sit in the partially meeting band, and that low income students began closing the gap while students with disabilities did not. Branco said the same group of students showed 53 and 51 percent growth in math in two years and then 37 percent, and the district has to ask why.

The district's response, drawn from its strategy for district improvement, includes data meetings with every grade level and department in the coming weeks, a look at whether geometry is taught too late in the year, a review of teacher designed curriculum against the state frameworks, co-teaching at the middle school, attendance tracking through ParentSquare and a cohort analysis to place acceleration support where it is needed. Committee members asked for a midyear update on those action steps and suggested the district help parents talk with younger children about why the tests matter now that MCAS is no longer a graduation requirement.

Washington trip and other business

Branco said the eighth grade trip, which the committee must approve each year as an out of state trip, costs a little less per student than last year. All 49 eighth graders are encouraged to go, fundraising will cover any family that cannot pay, and a nurse will travel if needed. The committee also approved a committee letter for the district's In the Loop newsletter, which the vice chair noted had to be approved in open session under the open meeting law.

The committee's correspondence included a resident's email about a building concern. Branco said the buildings and grounds director, the Department of Public Works and the town's structural engineer checked the areas, found them sound and recommended maintenance. The student representative reported that Rockport students received the Project Lead the Way Student Cup, an award for participation in the program's engineering and problem solving events, and that career day for grades nine through 12 is Dec. 7.

What was decided

• Minutes of Oct. 7: approved, from the meeting video.
• Accept a $500 donation from third grade families and photography equipment valued at about $2,000: approved, from the meeting video.
• Eighth grade trip to Washington, D.C.: approved, from the meeting video.
• In the Loop letter from the committee: approved as written, from the meeting video.

What happens next

• Data meetings with every grade level and department start in the coming weeks, Branco said. The committee asked for a midyear report on the action steps.
• School choice seats for next year come to the committee in February with the budget.

Where to find the records

• School Committee posting, Oct. 21
• Meeting video, on the public access channel
• School Committee page, where minutes are posted when approved

Earlier coverage: Rockport School Committee, Oct. 7 (Oct. 9), the previous meeting.

How we did this: Cape Ann Current watched the meeting online and checked names against the posting and the committee's page on the district website. These are our meeting notes, not the committee's minutes.

Read next: Rockport's $17.7 million school budget: who decides, what it pays for and how students are doing (Nov. 5).