Dedham Holds Its Own As MCAS Results Released

DEDHAM, MA - Newly released results from the spring MCAS exams show "many more students had gaps in their knowledge of math and, to a lesser extent, English language arts" compared to their peers in the same grades who took the standardized tests before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) said Tuesday.

Michael Welch, the Dedham Public Schools superintendent, said in an interview Thursday that schools in the English Language Arts portion of the test were higher than previous tests.

"In a preliminary look at the results we got, we are pleased with the performance of the vast majority of our students," he said. "In the ELA portion of the test, the high school kids actually performed better than in the previous test despite a lot of challenges."

He noted that some students flourished last year with virtual instruction, but that the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) only is allowing it for students with medical challenges that prevent them from attending school

"We have a couple of very medically compromised kids here," Welch said. "The struggle now is trying to find an acceptable remote option for them."

He added that he has looked into TEC Connections Academy, also called TECCA, a virtual school in East Walpole. More information about TECCA is available on its website here.

"They already have a huge waiting list," he said. "They are just inundated. A lot of parents are wanting to have a virtual option because they aren't comfortable sending their kids back to school."

He added that Ian Kelly, Dedham's assistant superintendent, "has been working hard to find accommodations for those who are super medically fragile."

"We are trying to provide the best possible education for everyone," Welch stressed.

Patch published an article on the subject, which can be found here. State House News Service also wrote an article on the declining scores during the pandemic. Here's the link.

The results for Dedham High School's 10th graders showed that, on the English portion, 17 percent of test-takers exceeded expectations. While 56 percent met expectations, 23 percent only partially met them, and another 4 percent failed to meet expectations.

In math, where many students statewide did not perform as well, the Dedham High School results were similar for 10th graders. Fourteen percent exceeded expectations, while the majority of them, or 55 percent, met them. A quarter of them, or 25 percent, only partially met expectations, while 6 percent failed to meet expectations.

Compared with the last MCAS test, administered in 2019, Dedham High's 10th graders showed a 10 percent increase in the number of students who exceeded expectations in English. There was a 5 percent increase in those who met expectations, while the number of those who only partially met expectations decreased by 17 percent. There was a two percent increase in those who failed to meet expectations compared with 2019 test results.

For students in grades three through eight, 48 percent exceeded expectations in math and English, which was a drop of only 3 percent. There was a 15 percent increase of those students who met expectations to 38 percent.