Middle-school benchmark review: district reports growth among 'bubble' and below-basic students as MTSS expands

Miss Mag Burke presented a disaggregated review of middle-school benchmark results, comparing beginning-of-year (Form A) to midyear (Form B) scores across grades six through eight and separating multiple-choice items from the writing-based text-dependent analysis.

Burke said the district saw increased percentages of students move out of bubble/basic categories in several grades and emphasized that growth was particularly evident where teachers had aligned instruction to priority standards. She cautioned that the benchmark comparisons are limited when used alone and argued for routine progress monitoring between benchmarks so teachers can identify and respond to students who are struggling. She recommended committing to MTSS practices, including strengthening tier-1 instruction, building common classroom assessments and providing targeted small-group interventions.

Committee members pressed for clarity about what happened between Form A and Form B for specific students and how the district will ensure interventions reach students in need. Burke and other leaders said the district will create more common formative checks, progress-monitoring processes and professional development next year; they pointed to successes in grade eight where more granular, vertically aligned practices produced measurable gains.

Staff framed the benchmarks as diagnostic: multiple-choice items provide quick diagnostic signals, while the open-response text-dependent analysis is heavily weighted and requires explicit instruction in analytical reading and writing. The committee did not vote on policy changes but acknowledged the need for next-year implementation steps.