By Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

The Spring 2015 MCAS results show that Somerville Public Schools are continuing to help all students realize their potential in the classroom. For three years running, Somerville has been the sole urban district in the top 15 percent of school districts across Massachusetts for student growth, as measured by MCAS Student Growth Percentile. This year, Somerville actually ranks among the top 12 percent for student growth, which measures a student’s change in academic performance compared to their peers from across the Commonwealth with similar test scores in previous years. These results show that our students’ performance is improving more than similar students; in short, they are learning more in the course of a year.

This is particularly significant because socioeconomic status is the strongest predictor of test scores and we are not a homogenous community. More than two-thirds of our high school students are eligible for free or reduced lunch. Yet our scores show that students from every income level and background are learning more than their peers in other districts. Somerville is reaching all of its students and helping them to improve academically. And it’s not the case that our students have further to go in their academic careers, and by playing catch up, our growth scores are higher. Districts that are higher performing on the MCAS also consistently rank higher on student growth. Like Somerville, those are the districts that are helping all students continually improve.

Even though socioeconomic status is strongly correlated with raw test scores, Somerville Public Schools also saw improvement there. The Composite Performance Index (CPI) score measures whether students are moving toward proficiency on the MCAS exams, and Somerville’s overall district CPI has improved in every subject for the last four years. We are seeing more Somerville students who scored in the warning or needs improvement categories on past MCAS exams now scoring in the proficient or advanced categories. Our students’ growth isn’t merely incremental progress—it’s catapulting them into proficient or advanced scores on MCAS exams, too, with terrific progress on the math exams specifically.

Now, there is always room for improvement, and in particular, the Grade 3 reading exam results highlight an area that requires attention. Fortunately, Somerville Public Schools has already put into place programs and initiatives that address this area. Getting every student off on the right foot is key to improving those results, and our district is looking to support students and families before they even enter kindergarten. Somerville Public Schools has hired its first Director of Early Education and launched SomervilleHub.org, a website that provides a single portal of entry for all families to receive the services and education they need, whether from our public schools, non-profit agencies, or private providers. High-quality preschool education narrows the achievement gap by as much as half, the research shows, and if we want to improve our students’- reading skills in Grade 3, we have to start even earlier.

Somerville Schools also recognize that a student’s academic success is not determined solely by what goes on in the classroom. Helping all students reach their greatest potential means supporting them both inside and outside the classroom. It’s why this year’s budget adds critical positions including an assistant to the Director of Student Services, a psychologist, and a board certified behavior analyst. These are investments in holistically supporting our students. Meanwhile, our new Community Cabinet is bringing together leaders from both the school side and the City side to address issues that affect academic achievement and cannot be addressed by the schools alone, including after school and summer programming, housing, transportation and more.

A grade on a standardized test is not and cannot be the only measure of success, and the MCAS results are not the end goal in and of themselves. That said, every piece of data has value, and these scores are one way to measure our progress. These results are an achievement that belongs to every student, their families, and the teachers and educators who are working with our students every day. Our families and teachers have embraced the challenge and the opportunity to make sure that every child in our district has the opportunity to succeed. It’s a testament to your hard work that Somerville Public Schools lead the way for all urban districts in Massachusetts.