Education Benchmarks

It is very difficult to understand how well we are doing in terms of implementing education reform unless the various characteristics of Massachusetts communities are factored into the evaluation. The Effectiveness Index research is based on a methodology that statistically analyzes demographic data so that individual school districts can be compared to their demographic peers. For purposes of this report, I will place the Commonwealth's school systems into four categories: Advantaged Massachusetts; Middle Massachusetts; Challenged Massachusetts; and Fifteen Cities, a subset of Challenged Massachusetts. Each of these groupings is based on the demography of their communities.

Advantaged Massachusetts communities (the top 50 in the state's demography) are characterized by high education levels, high incomes, and high property values. Weston, Hingham, Franklin and Natick are part of Advantaged Massachusetts. In terms of educational characteristics, per-pupil expenditures (PPE) are generous, averaging $6,414, with a range of $10,265 (Dover-Sherborn) to $4,920 (Westford) [These numbers are Fiscal Year 1998 figures. Current spending is higher]. State education reform aid tends to be low, averaging $496 per year per pupil, with a range of $1,843 (Franklin) to $143 (Lincoln). There are very few students (4%) who qualify for free or reduced lunch, a measure of poverty. The statewide average for Free/Reduced Lunch is 26%. Almost all of the students speak English as a primary language. Parents tend to have been successful in education, and they understand the importance of good schools.

Middle Massachusetts consists of about 140 communities (the number varies with grade due to the fluctuating number of regional systems as grade level changes) clustered around the demographic center of the state. These are typical Massachusetts hometowns, where average is the norm. Middle Massachusetts is home to communities like Norwood, Beverly, Abington, and South Hadley. These districts average a $6,015 per-pupil expenditure. PPE's range from $10,814 in Cambridge to $4,391 in Winthrop. Typically, each receives $882 per year per pupil in new education reform aid, compared to the state average of $1,263. The range of per-pupil reform aid is $3,067 (Mohawk Trail Regional) to $63 (Somerset). There are relatively few students (12%) who qualify for free or reduced lunch, a measure of poverty. The statewide average for Free/Reduced Lunch is 26%.

Challenged Massachusetts is made up of the 50 communities at the lower end of the state's demography. Districts in this category include communities such as Hull, Palmer, and Holbrook, as well as many cities. These districts average a $6,100 per-pupil expenditure. Typically, each receives $1,626 per year per pupil in new education reform aid, compared to the state average of $1,263. The range of state education reform aid is $3,643 (Lawrence) to $233 (Ayer). Many students (33%) qualify for free or reduced lunch, a measure of poverty. The statewide average for Free/Reduced Lunch is 26%.

The Fifteen Cities are the 15 urban communities that are the most demographically disadvantaged of the 50 communities that comprise Challenged Massachusetts. This cluster includes cities such as Worcester, Boston, Fitchburg, and Lawrence. While these communities are included in Challenged Massachusetts, there are three good reasons to focus on them as part of the Fifteen Cities.

1. These 15 communities educate 29% - almost one-third - of our students. If the Massachusetts economy is to retain its vitality, and we are to offer quality education for all, we must find some way to be more effective at educating the 300,000 or so students in these systems.

2. These systems have large percentages of students failing MCAS. In fact, 29% of the state's students attend school in the Fifteen Cities, but 82% of the students who failed the Grade 8 ELA MCAS and 56% of the students who failed the Math Grade 8 MCAS attend school in these 15 systems.

3. They are remarkably similar in their demographic profiles. These 15 districts are large school systems that are home to 45% of the state's minority students. Since minority academic performance is a major concern of many people, reforming these systems is the key to boosting minority achievement.

The districts in the Fifteen Cities average a $6,503 per-pupil expenditure. The range is $8,118 (Boston) to $5,876 (Fitchburg). On average, each receives $2,447 per year per pupil in new education reform aid, compared to the $1,263 state average. The range of state aid is $3,643 (Lawrence) to $1,559 (Somerville). This is the only segment of the state's demography where a majority of students (57%) qualify for free or reduced lunch, a measure of poverty. The statewide average for Free/Reduced lunch is 26%.

Characteristics of Basic Kinds of Community

Overcoming Demography's Challenges

While a district's demographics have much to do with the educational performance of its students, some districts have chosen to organize themselves to move beyond their demography. Several systems have demonstrated that community and student characteristics need not be the determining factor in student achievement. (See Appendix A for a listing of over-performers on the 2000 MCAS.)

• On Grade 4 MCAS, Ayer, and Everett over-performed in ELA 4; Ayer, Chelsea, and Orange over-performed in Mathematics; and Ayer, Everett, and Orange over-performed in Science and Technology.

• On Grade 8 MCAS, demographically-challenged overachievers include Gardner, Lawrence, and Berkshire Hills (Great Barrington, Stockbridge, West Stockbridge) in ELA; Chelsea, Lawrence, Leominster, Ludlow, and Gardner in Math; and Gardner, Lawrence, Leominster, and Chelsea in Science and Technology.

• On the Grade 10 MCAS ELA, systems that scored beyond their demography included Southbridge, Clinton, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Ayer, and Hull. On Grade 10 Math, overachievers included Ware, Chelsea, Ayer, Greenfield, Webster, and Southbridge. On the Science and Technology tests, overachievers included Chelsea, Clinton, Southbridge, Hull, Ayer, North Adams, and Fitchburg.

All of the above substantially over-achieved their demography (3 scaled score points or better) despite facing significant demographic challenges.

Making the Grade

MCAS and the Class of 2004 Students who took last Spring's MCAS and are members of the Class of 2004 will have to pass MCAS - score Needs Improvement or better on both the Math and English Language Arts (ELA) tests - in order to graduate. Although students take the History MCAS and Science and Technology MCAS tests, members of the Class of 2004 will not have to pass them to meet state requirements.

Let us imagine that the scores obtained on last year's Grade 8 MCAS by students in the Class of 2004 counted for graduation.

• For students who attend school in Advantaged Massachusetts, the 50 communities at the top of the state's demography, 98% of the students would have passed the ELA test and 84% would have passed the Math. Since students must pass both to graduate, at least 16% of the students in demographically advantaged communities - those who did not pass Math - would have failed if passing last year's Grade 8 MCAS were a graduation requirement.

• Concerning students who live in Middle Massachusetts, the 140 or so communities around the center of the state's demography, 94% passed last year's Grade 8 ELA MCAS. In Math, 69% passed. Since students must pass both ELA and Math, at least 31% of students in Middle Massachusetts - those who did not pass Math - would have failed if passing last year's Grade 8 MCAS were a graduation requirement.

• For students who attend school in Challenged Massachusetts, the 50 communities in the lower part of the state's demography, 86% of the students would have passed the ELA test and 51% would have passed the Math. Since students must pass both to graduate, at least 49% of students in demographically disadvantaged communities - those who did not pass Math - would have failed. Children in the schools in the lower 25% of the state's demography account for 49% of all of the public school students in Massachusetts.

• For students who attend school in the Fifteen Cities, the most demographically challenged districts in the state, 74% passed last year's Grade 8 ELA MCAS. On the Grade 8 Math test, 32% of students in the Fifteen Cities passed. Since students must pass both to graduate, at least 68% of students the Fifteen Cities - those who did not pass Math - would have failed. Students in the Fifteen Cites comprise 26% of all of the public school students in Massachusetts.

The following chart illustrates the range of achievement between advantaged and disadvantaged communities in Massachusetts as reflected on the 2000 Grade 8 ELA and Math MCAS.

The basic message of this chart is largely unchanged from last year. Not surprisingly, a district's success in placing its students in the Pass category is very dependent upon its demography. The challenge facing education reformers is clear as we assess the first eight years of the contemporary school improvement effort: Boost the achievement of students in our less advantaged communities.