APPENDIX A: Effectiveness Indexes on the 1999 MCAS

The following charts list the top sixty districts in terms of their score on the Effectiveness Index. The Effectiveness Index is the difference between the likely score based on a district's demography and the district's actual score on the MCAS. Districts are listed from higher to lower Effectiveness Indexes.

When analyzing anything about student performance, it is important to understand that many Massachusetts communities are part of regional school districts and that, depending on grade level, a community's school district may change. Thus, the Grade 4 results reflect evaluating a different set of school districts than do the Grade 8 results and do the Grade 10 results. The following charts represent 97% of the state's students. Due to small sample size, those districts where fewer than 50 students took the MCAS are not included.

There are 351 communities in Massachusetts. There are 204 school districts whose children took MCAS tests in all three grades. The other communities are part of various regional school districts. Thus, the only way to compare total MCAS score is to limit that analysis to the 204 systems whose children in fact took MCAS tests at all three grade levels, Grades 4, 8, and 10.

Listings are provided for the following categories:

1) School Districts (including Regional Districts) for each grade level;

• Grade four performance: All three subjects combined
• Grade four performance: English Language Arts
• Grade four performance: Math
  
• Grade four performance: Science

• Grade eight performance: All three subjects combined
  
• Grade eight performance: English Language Arts
  
• Grade eight performance: Math
  
• Grade eight performance: Science

• Grade ten performance: All three subjects combined
  
• Grade ten performance: English Language Arts
  
• Grade ten performance: Math
  
• Grade ten performance: Science

2) School Districts whose students took all MCAS exams in all three grades in-district

This is also a listing of the 60 most Effective Districts of the 204 systems whose students participated in all three grades of MCAS in-district. This listing is derived from the same basic methodology as are the lists for Effective Districts in individual grades and subjects. It is based on looking at the difference between a district's demographic rank and its MCAS score rank. For example, if a district was ranked the 100th highest demographically and its students achieved a combined MCAS score that was the 80th highest in the state, that district would be a +20 in terms of overall effectiveness. If that district that was ranked #100 demographically and achieved a combined score that was the 120th highest, it would be a -20 in terms of overall effectiveness.