Test Scores Drop Slightly for Maryland Schools

By Michael Theis

Maryland public school students fared slightly worse this year on standardized assessment tests—or MSAs—designed to gauge the performance of schools, according to data released today by the Maryland State Department of Education.

Maryland school officials blamed the decline in numbers on the transition from the Maryland School Assessment test to the Common Core State Standards tests, set to be implemented in the 2014-2015 school year.

"We are in a transition period, both in Maryland and throughout the nation," said State Superintendent of Schools Lillian M. Lowery in a media release announcing the test results. "Maryland schools have been implementing the Common Core State Standards in reading and mathematics, but new assessments aligned to the curriculum will not be ready for use until the 2014-15 school year. This misalignment will certainly affect our scores this year and next."

Statewide, an average of just under 78.9 percent of students in grades three through eight earned a proficient score or better on the MSA math and algebra test, a roughly three percentage point drop over the previous year. The same cohort saw an average of 84 percent of students earn a proficient score or better on the MSA reading tests, a slight (two-tenths of a percentage point) drop from the previous year.

Equalling last year's results, an average of 73.6 percent of Maryland students earned a proficient or better score in the MSA science and biology test, which are tested in grades five and eight.

“There's a huge disconnect between these scores and the hard work that educators and students did during this past school year," said Maryland State Educators Association President Betty Weller in a statement. "These scores reflect the deep and problematic misalignment between what students are taught and how they're being tested, which will continue for at least the next school year."