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Superintendent details MCAS results, accountability targets and district goals
Summary
Superintendent Jason DeFalco presented a deep review of MCAS and accountability metrics, citing strong gains in some grades and subjects and concerning declines or low growth in specific cohorts; he proposed district goals tied to state‑assigned targets and described targeted interventions.
Superintendent Jason DeFalco presented the district’s end‑of‑year evidence and MCAS/accountability results, stressing that the district is analyzing outcomes down to class and student level to identify where instruction and interventions are needed.
DeFalco highlighted areas of strong performance — for example, he reported Grade 3 ELA meeting/exceeding at about 50% compared with the state average of 42% — and substantial gains in science in some grades. He also flagged troubling results: recent fifth‑ and sixth‑grade cohorts showed drops in achievement and low student growth percentiles (SGPs), prompting a deeper review of items, strands and classroom performance. DeFalco said staff are "in the weeds" with section‑by‑section and student‑level reports to determine root causes and targeted supports.
The superintendent said the district will embed Department of Education (DESE) assigned scaled‑score targets into its student learning goals and continue to use the district’s revised assessment system and data cycles to monitor progress. He described several local strategies that have supported gains in targeted grades, including tutoring, targeted math interventions, a grade‑8 academy that reduced class sizes for some students, and curricular changes in science.
DeFalco closed by noting that overall district points on the DESE accountability matrix remain a mix of strengths and weaknesses: for example, the middle school met a high proportion of DESE’s targets for its lowest‑performing students, while districtwide English language arts achievement points remain an area of focus. He said a revised set of district goals will be circulated for committee evaluation and finalization.
