Preliminary results show students passing MCAS

LYNN – Tenth grade students across the state continued to improve on the MCAS exams in 2009 and 84 percent of students in that grade have already met the state’s minimum testing requirements to achieve a high school diploma.Gov. Deval Patrick and Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray Wednesday released statewide results of the 2009 MCAS exams administered last spring, showing across the board gains in several testing areas and improvements among minorities.The state did not release results for individual communities and schools, but is expected to do so later this month.The announcement marks the earliest that MCAS results have been publicly released since the beginning of the state’s testing program in 1998. The state said it wanted to release the results as schools were opening up and use them as a positive way to set the stage for the release of individual community statistics.The statistics from communities such as Lynn will be of increased importance this year as the state has warned communities that some schools may be at risk of falling under state control if MCAS testing does not improve.Like most urban communities, Lynn still has several schools that are undergoing restructuring or are in state warning status. Although the state DOE has not said what schools could be handed over to Commissioner Mitchell Chester, it would not be surprising to see one of Lynn’s schools on the list if students performed poorly on last year’s test.Statewide, Grade 10 gains were propelled by improved performance from all student groups including African American, Asian, Hispanic/Latino and white students, students with disabilities, limited English proficient students and low income students. Results show that all student groups showed an increase in the percent scoring “proficient” or higher on the English Language Arts (ELA) and Math exams and almost all showed improvement on the Science and Technology/Engineering exam (STE).”The Governor and I congratulate the students and their teachers on this great accomplishment,” said Lt. Governor Tim Murray. “We remain committed to promoting high standards and expectations for all students and are pleased to see this continued progress.”Statewide, 2009 MCAS results in ELA showed gains by students in most grades and all subgroups, a significant change from the past several years of flat or declining results in elementary and middle school performance.Gains made by African American and Hispanic/Latino students mirrored improvement statewide, leaving a smaller, but still evident gap in performance in some grades than has been seen in previous years.The largely positive release of test scores is the latest in academic success nationally and internationally for Massachusetts students. Last month the College Board announced that Massachusetts was one of the top three performing states in every SAT category in 2009 and students also performed well on the Trends in Mathematics and Science Survey.”These results demonstrate that high standards coupled with high support yields strong achievement,” Chester said. “Our teachers and students are demonstrating that they are capable of responding to high expectations.”In all, 79 percent of all Grade 10 students scored proficient or higher in ELA and 75 percent scored proficient or higher in math. All students are required to either score proficient or higher on ELA and math or earn a score of at least 220 (needs improvement) and complete an Educational Proficiency Plan before graduation. In addition, students beginning with the class of 2010 are required to earn a passing score of 220 or higher on the Grade 10 STE test.Ninety percent of this year’s senior class (the class of 2010) have met the minimum testing requirement by scoring needs improvement or higher in ELA, math and STE. Still, wide disparities remain among subgroup performance: Just 49 percent of limited English proficient students, 67 percent of students with disabilities and 73 percent of Hispanic/Latino students h