MCAS 2022: Testing scores show these Western Massachusetts charter schools made gains in learning

By now, most everyone knows that because of the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, students are not where they are supposed to be.

Fewer students who took the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System tests in late spring are meeting expectations compared to students who took the test in the spring of 2019.

Some charter schools in the Pioneer Valley, though, seemingly pushed back against the trend of learning loss, with scores increasing from where they were when students took the tests in 2021. In other words, between the time the students took the half-length assessment in the spring of 2021 to when they took the full test again in 2022, these schools showed marked growth in the number of students who met expectations.

The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education charter schools are independent publicly funded schools that operate under five-year charters granted by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Charter public schools often serve a higher or equal number of students of color or who have disabilities or have high needs, for instance, than the state average, and are more likely to meet grade level expectations, according to the Massachusetts Charter Public School Association.

Statewide, students faced continued learning loss in the English portion of the MCAS tests compared to where they tested in 2021. Of the approximately 400,000 third- through eighth-grade students who took the MCAS in 2022, only 41% met expectations, a 5-percentage-point drop from the number of students who met expectations a year before.

Meanwhile, 42% of the 67 students at Four Rivers Charter Public, in Greenfield, met math expectations, according to the MCAS results for 2022 — a 22-point jump from where students tested a year before. Students at Four Rivers saw similar results with their English language arts scores but representatives for Four Rivers Charter Public school did not respond requests for comment.

At Hampden Charter School of Science West in West Springfield, students performed better than the state average in English scores. According to 2022 testing results, 56% of its 176 sixth- through eighth-graders met expectations for English. It was a 12-point jump from where the school’s scores were a year ago.

“We are not done yet, but once we see the results, the progress and student growth, it gives us great energy and renewal,” said Tarkan Topcuoglu, CEO of Hampden Charter School of Science West.

At the beginning of the 2021-2022 academic year, Hampden Charter students received a diagnostic test to target strengths and weaknesses, according to Topcuoglu. Upon receiving the results, educators created action plans and held special one-on-one interventions. Additionally, the school hired more math and English intervention specialists and a full-time social worker was provided in school, after school and Saturday school offerings were free of charge.

“Students at (Hampden Charter) and across Massachusetts continue to recover from the disruptions of the pandemic. The fact that our students at both our east and west campuses exceeded statewide requirements for reading and writing is nothing short of inspiring,” Topcuoglu said.

Educators at Libertas Academy Charter School in Springfield, are happy with how their students grew in English language arts, a result that came about after the school began tracking student learning, according to Ben Cruse, managing director of curriculum.

“For growth, it is important to set goals on a daily basis and track them religiously,” Cruse said.

Of the 243 Libertas Academy students in grades 6 through 8 who tested in English language arts in 2022, 30% met expectations — a 9-point rise from where students tested the year before.

A closer look at achievement results for 2022 shows that of the 243 middle schoolers who took the MCAS tests, 30% met the expectations in math, an 8-percentage point gain. Meanwhile, 23% met English expectations, closing the opportunity gap by 9 points in 2022.

According to Cruse, students at Libertas Academy improved in English because of the implementation of small, guided reading blocks for 35 minutes a day.

“Every teacher ran the intervention block at the same time throughout the day,” Cruse said. “The main thing is that our amazing teachers set clear goals and the students went after it.”

From here, Libertas Academy will hold intervention blocks to focus on students’ basic writing skills. Cruse said writing ability is needed in all subjects, through college and into post-school life.

“We reframed (supplemental instruction) and looked at it as an opportunity and not punishment,” Cruse said. “We have emphasized celebrating student growth on a frequent basis, especially coming off COVID-19. It is good to step back and celebrate.”

At Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School, in South Hadley, students in grades 7 and 8 saw a 3-percentage point gain in those who met expectations in English from where they tested the year before. The school teaches grades seven through 12.

Of the school’s 132 seventh- and eighth-grade students, 47% met expectations for English language arts standards during the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System tests.

Brent Nielsen, head of the school, said for the last two years the school held a free summer enrichment program to focus on middle school students’ math and English skills.

Nielsen also attributed his students’ growth to a step the school took four years ago, long before the pandemic came and led to school disruption. It hired an assessment coordinator that helped the school organize standardized testing for its middle- and high-school students.

“This has allowed us to pay careful attention to the testing environment for students and ensure that student needs are accommodated, something that was especially important when students returned from remote instruction,” Nielsen said.

Meanwhile, students seemed to better weather learning disruptions when it came to mathematics.

Statewide, 39% of students in grades three through eight met expectations in the mathematics portion of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System test, a 6-percentage-point increase from where they tested a year before.

At Springfield Preparatory Charter School, however, students in grades 3 through 8 saw a 24-point jump in their scores from a year before.

Executive director William Spirer said the results help highlight where the school needs to focus its efforts.

“Data-driven school helps to see what the learning needs are and helps to drive intentional collaboration,” Spirer said.

Of the 268 Springfield Prep students who took the test, 46% met expectations in math and 41% met expectations in English. However, the scores at the school are a steep drop from where students were in the pre-pandemic 2019.

“The (math) results are encouraging and both teachers and students should be proud of their work, but there are continued efforts to close the gap in English, which can be harder and a more complex change,” Spirer said. “The staff is working hard to see where help is needed and will implement small group supports in those areas to get back to pre-pandemic levels in math and English.”

Meanwhile, Kathleen Wang, principal at Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School in Hadley, said her school quickly adapted to remote learning during the pandemic. When schools closed on a Friday in March of 2020, Wang said the school was back to teaching students the following Monday.

Of the school’s 294 students in grades 3 through 8 who took the math portion of the MCAS test, 51% met or exceeded expectations. This was a 9-percentage-point increase from where scores were a year before.

Throughout the learning disruptions, the school surveyed its students, their families and its staff to gauge their emotional needs.

“We emphasized pulling together to see where the highest needs were and we are still working on it,” Wang said. “It is really about that human factor of adapting and being flexible.”