Mississippi’s new standardized test results are back, and the Meridian Public School District showed steady gains.
“We saw five of our schools that improved in their performance, and seven of the ten of our schools actually maintained or showed gains on a much more rigorous assessment,” said MPSD Superintendent Dr. Amy Carter.
The test results are from the 2014-15 school year, the first time students took the test, which is called the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Career, or “PARCC” for short.
Researchers predicted that most school districts would see a drop in scores on the PARCC assessment due to an increase in rigor. Although the district showed steady progress, Carter said the district still has work to do.
“We looked across the board and we still see that the district has not met the level of successful yet. We came in as a D.”
She added that targeting all students is now the district’s new focus.
“As we go forward and look at where we’re headed for the upcoming year, it’s really about making sure we’re not just meeting the needs of struggling students, but average students, and stretching those students who were already advanced or proficient on the assessment.”
Carter said the district will spend more time training teachers to increase student performance.
She explained why it’s important to further prepare students for the test.
“We oftentimes see that it’s not just about preparing students for an exam. It’s preparing students for the workplace. It’s preparing students for college. So we’re working on making sure that we can make learning relevant for all of our students, and then from that, the assessment will take care of itself.”
.png)