This year's MSA results continue the tradition of strong performance for all Calvert County Public Schools (CCPS). No schools in Calvert County were identified as "in need of improvement" by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). This has been true for every year that the Maryland School Assessments (MSA) have been administered.
Measurable gains were recorded at every tested grade level (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8) in both reading and mathematics. "I commend the hard work of staff and students in meeting and exceeding the increasingly difficult, very high yearly target of achievement that this test represents," noted Dr. J. Kenneth Horsmon, Superintendent of Schools, who went on to say that "our schools are among the highest performing schools in the state." The Geometry and English 10 results for high schools will not be available until early fall due to standard setting for the new English 10 test.
System wide, 7.8 out of ten students in grades three through eight are reading and computing at proficient or advanced levels, up from 7.2 on last year's tests. Additionally, the data show that the performance of every racial/ethnic student group in the CCPS increased from 2004 to 2005 across all grades, in all schools, in both reading and mathematics. CCPS has a total of 252 indicators that are measured and then checked to see if Annual Measurable Objectives (AMO) are met. These indicators include reading and math targets for aggregates in each school, subgroups for FARMS, Spec. Ed, LEP, subgroups for each school containing ethnic groups, and aggregate attendance rates for each school.
Of the 252 standards from the state that comprise the rating system of schools for met or not met, CCPS met 248 of them. Only four of the standards were not met. Special education students accounted for all four of the standards not met. In schools where a standard is not met, the MSDE refers to the schools as schools requiring local attention. MSDE is recalculating the results of two of the four standards right now, and we expect the number of indicators met to change by next week and the number of schools referred to local attention as well. In all four of these schools, other data miscoding are driving appeals to MSDE for reconfiguring of data. New guidelines governing special education students and a new modified MSA category will form the basis of still other appeals. System performance on the MSA is impressive. Reading at a Glance:
- The percent of all CCPS students scoring at proficient or above in reading ranged from 75 - 89.9 at each grade level.
- All CCPS elementary schools exceeded the target of 57.8 percent scoring at the proficient and advanced levels.
- All CCPS middle schools exceeded the target of 56.7 percent scoring at the proficient and advanced levels.
- CCPS improved student achievement performance for all subgroups in reading. Mathematics at a Glance:
- The percent of all CCPS students scoring at proficient or above in mathematics ranged from 53 - 88.6 at each grade level.
- All CCPS elementary schools exceeded the target of 53.6 percent scoring at the proficient and advanced levels.
- All CCPS middle schools exceeded the target of 35.8 percent scoring at the proficient and advanced levels.
- CCPS improved student achievement performance for all subgroups in mathematics.
The degree of improvement for some subgroups is worthy of special mention. For example, the three-year growth for third-grade special education students reading at the advanced and proficient levels represents a 12.8 percent improvement. Free and Reduced Meal students also made gains in mathematics of 13.2 percent over this same time frame. "Clearly, guaranteeing the continuous improvement of all students to high standards of performance is at the center of No Child Left Behind. We are proud that our schools take this mission seriously and that despite our high levels of student performance, they are making gains for all students each year. This is not easy to do," remarked William Phalen, President of the Board of Education.