Hopkinton reports strong MCAS gains; district ranks highly in math and civics

Hopkinton Public Schools officials on Nov. 6 told the School Committee that most grade levels returned to pre‑COVID performance levels on the spring 2025 MCAS and that the district continues to outperform statewide averages in both achievement and growth.

"Most grade levels have returned to pre COVID performance levels and that most students and subgroups have maintained or have improved their performance over the prior year," said Mr. Labrad while presenting the district's MCAS analysis. He said Hopkinton outperformed statewide averages (the speaker cited the state average as roughly 50 percent meeting or exceeding) and noted particularly strong results in mathematics and civics.

Why it matters: MCAS is the statewide, uniform assessment used by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and is one of several measures that contribute to district accountability ratings. Officials said the results provide a snapshot for district planning and professional development work.

Key results and context • By the high‑school assessment point, the district reported roughly 80 percent of students meeting or exceeding expectations; the presenter cited figures in the low‑to‑mid‑80s for some metrics. • Hopkinton reported top rankings in several grades and subjects: examples cited by the presenter included grade‑5 math (ranked number 1 in the state, tied with another district), grade‑8 ELA (ranked 3rd) and grade‑10 rankings in the top 10. The presenter also noted that across grades 3–8 Hopkinton had the highest percentage of students meeting or exceeding in math among public non‑charter districts in Massachusetts. • Civics: roughly 80 percent of students met or exceeded expectations on the civics assessment; officials flagged that only about one in four students with disabilities met or exceeded in civics on the initial administration and said this will be the subject of follow‑up analysis.

Student growth and subgroup findings District staff emphasized student growth percentiles (SGP) as an important complement to achievement data. "Most of those scores hover around 50 or higher," Mr. Labrad said, noting that an SGP around 50 indicates typical growth and that 60 or above represents strong growth. He highlighted improvements in some cohorts of students with disabilities (for example, a cited cohort rose from the low‑40s to the low‑50s SGP year‑to‑year) but said gaps remain in other places.

District response and next steps Officials described ongoing and planned steps to build on strengths and address gaps: continuing literacy and math professional development, launching an elementary literacy task force, using benchmarking and progress monitoring, strengthening MTSS (Multi‑Tiered System of Supports) and convening the director of student services to study the civics results for students with disabilities.

Attribution: Mr. Labrad led the data presentation and analysis during the committee meeting; Superintendent Bishop also spoke in support of using results to target interventions.