Individual scores for each district and school are to be released Wednesday.
More 10th graders than ever were judged proficient on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment Systems exam this year, but fewer passed the crucial graduation test.
The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released statewide results of the MCAS exam that students in grades three through 10 took in the spring of 2012. The scores for individual districts and schools will be released Wednesday.
Department officials said 2012 scores are the highest in the 14-year history.
Among 10th graders, 88 percent scored proficient or above in English, topping the previous highest grade of 84 percent in 2011; and 78 percent scored proficient in math, besting the 2011 percentage by one point. Eighth-graders hit their highest English score in 2012, with 81 percent scoring proficient in English; The math score of 52 percent proficient tied with last year’s best score in that grade.
“I commend our students and teachers for the hard work that went into making these impressive scores possible,” Gov. Deval. L. Patrick said in a prepared statement. “I am proud of the progress we have made but won’t be satisfied until we close the achievement gap and all students have the opportunity to reach their full potential.”
Students in other grades did not do as well.
In Grade 6, 66 percent of students scored proficient in English, which was down from the 2010 high of 69 percent. In the fifth grade, 61 percent of students scored proficient in English, down from the 67 percent high achieved last year.
Also disappointing is the percentage of sophomores who failed at least one of the English, math and science exams, which they must pass to graduate. Last year, 13 percent failed one of the three tests, while this year 14 percent failed. Sophomores must earn a score of needs improvement, rather than proficient, to earn their diploma.
Students who fall into a variety of subgroups, such as being a racial minority or having a learning disability, are improving. Although they continue to score lower than their white, middle-class peers, the gap in achievement is closing, the department reported.
In the 10th grade English exam, for example, the number of black students scoring proficient or above increased to 76 percent from 69; learning disabled students’ proficiency scores rose to 60 from 49 percent; and proficiency levels for students learning English increased to 35 percent from 27. At the same time, the number of white students scoring proficient or above increased to 93 percent from 89, according to the state.
In Springfield, where 10 of the city’s 45 schools are listed as Level 4 because of chronic underperformance, the results were mixed, said Superintendent Daniel J. Warwick.
“I think our students follow the statewide trends. The scores will be up in grade 10 and some of our subgroups are up,” he said.
Mostly the scores are flat, which Warwick called disappointing.
“We were looking to improve more....although we are very pleased with the improvements in some of our schools and we were very pleased with the grade 10 results,” he said.
The biggest change this year is that the state will no longer use federal adequate yearly progress standards, which required all students reach proficiency in math and English by 2014. In the past, school systems that did not meet regular progress goals were sanctioned.
The standards will be replaced by the state’s progress and performance index, which calls for every school to reduce by half the proficiency gap between current scores and 100 in five years.
For example, 41 percent of students in Springfield scored proficient or above in 2011 in English. The district goal would now be to improve by 29.5 percent by 2017.
“We are happy with the change to the PPI standard. We feel it is more reasonable, and we are pleased they are taking into consideration student growth,” Warwick said.
Schools will also be measured using data that compares students’ improvement to that of other students who performed in the same range. The state has been using that data for several years.
Chicopee Superintendent Richard W. Rege Jr. said he likes the new accountability system, calling it less punitive and more flexible.
“I would say I am cautiously optimistic about going forward. There were some scores where we thought we did very well and some scores I was not happy with,” he said.
While Chicopee schools remain in the Level 3 category, Rege said he is grateful none have moved to Level 4 status.