Malden 2022 MCAS Results: English Scores Dip, Math Scores Rise

MALDEN, MA — State MCAS results this past week showed a mixed bag for the Malden Public Schools, with some math scores rising as English Language Arts scores fell compared to 2021 figures.

While the district gained ground in some areas, Malden remained below several MCAS marks it set in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, local trends map to broader patterns in state MCAS data, which showed English scores falling and math scores rising in most grades across Massachusetts in this year’s testing.

Officials reacted to those state-level trends in an announcement on Thursday, with state Education Secretary James Peyser saying the results “show that it may take a few years for students to recover academically from the COVID-19 pandemic."

2022 was the first year of full MCAS testing since 2019. The state canceled testing in 2020 due to COVID-19. Though officials brought tests back for 2021, tests in grades three through eight ran as "half tests."

In Malden, the number of students in grades three through eight this year categorized as “meeting or exciting expectations” on English MCAS tests fell by five percent compared to 2021, now landing at 36%.

The rate for tenth grade students similarly fell six percent.

Math rates stayed level at 42% in tenth grade between 2021 and 2022, while they improved by seven percent for students in third through eighth grade.

Fifth and eighth grade science meeting/exceeding expectations rates also improved, rising seven percent.

Tenth grade science test scores this year were not comparable to previous years as the state rolled out a new “next generation” MCAS test for tenth graders for the first time in 2022.

Within grade-by-grade test scores, state data showed Malden’s math MCAS gains were most pronounced in younger grades.

The rate of third graders meeting or exceeding expectations in math jumped by 9% this year. Fourth grade rates increased by 15%. Fifth grade saw a four percent increase, while the rate of sixth graders meeting or exceeding expectations climbed by 11%.

Drops in Malden English scores, meanwhile, came across a broader spread of ages. Third grade passing/exceeding expectations rates fell eight percent. Fourth, fifth and tenth graders all saw six percent decreases. Sixth grade rates fell by one percent. Seventh grade rates stayed level, while eighth grade rates fell by five percent.

State Sen. Jason Lewis, whose district includes Malden, was among those reacting to new MCAS scores last week, issuing a statement with joint Committee on Education co-chair and State Rep. Alice Peisch on Thursday noting lingering impacts of various education disruptions during COVID-19.

“We applaud the hard work and dedication of faculty and staff at Massachusetts schools who remain committed to providing the best possible education to our children,” Lewis and Peisch wrote. “Despite their best efforts, it is clear that the public health crisis has negatively impacted student learning and mental health since March 2020.”

Lewis and Peisch said their committee will hold an informational hearing later this year to hear testimony on both the extent of interrupted learning and next steps to address student needs.

“The legislature will utilize the critical data and information gathered by the Education Committee to inform future policy decisions on where we go from here to ensure that our students are well served as we come out of the pandemic,” the pair continued.

Debate continues about the place of MCAS and standardized testing in general in school accountability systems.

Just last month, though, the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to increase minimum MCAS scores required to graduate high school.

That move came during a meeting at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education headquarters in Malden, prompting protests and opposition from groups concerned about student stress, an increased focus on test prep and an incomplete picture of school and student success in test score data.

Amid that opposition, State Education Commissioner Jeff Riley argued for the tighter MCAS graduation standards in filings with the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, saying research had shown students who score at or near the current passing threshold were not prepared for success at the postsecondary level.

New MCAS graduation requirements are set to take effect for the high school class of 2026.

See Malden’s full 2022 MCAS results here.