McCann Strategizes on Pumping Up MCAS Scores
 The School Committee was informed about strategies to raise the school's MCAS levels. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — McCann Technical School is focusing on how to reach the top tier in MCAS scores.
The McCann School Committee on Thursday night reviewed new strategies the school will adopt to better its chances of closing a proficiency gap and earning a Level 1 school status.
Principal Justin Kratz said McCann is already a high-scoring school and it becomes increasingly difficult to score higher because its has already made large accomplishments.
"We are in a chronic problem that will be tough to break out of. When you are a high-achieving school, and they want you to show growth, there is not a whole lot of room to grow," he said. "We have been a high-achieving MCAS school for a long time."
The state bases the levels on now many students are moving up through proficiency ratings. The school dropped the year before from Level 1 to Level 2.
Kratz said McCann scored 74; this is one point away from achieving Level 1 status. The score is based on McCann's past four years of Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System results.
Kratz said McCann can earn extra credit points by meeting certain criteria, such as meeting low drop-out requirements. However, the school has already achieved many of these. Kratz said there will be a stronger focus on moving at-risk students into higher score brackets.
"In our high-risk population there is so much growth we could capitalize on and, hopefully, not need those extra credit points," Kratz said. "If we can take control of the things we have control over and work with those students, we can hopefully secure some of these main points and not have to rely on extra credit."
Kratz added that McCann's English language arts scores are on target and math scores and science scores are slightly below target.
"It really was a school-wide effort, and we spent a lot of time saying let's make MCAS everybody's concern," he said. "That really helped us in our performance last year, and overall our students did really well."
Kratz said this year, teachers will focus on implementing MCAS-type questions into their curriculum as well as have access to past student scores so they can tailor the class to their students' weaknesses.
Kratz said there will be an even larger focus on encouraging the students in an attempt to make them more comfortable and confident with the test. He said there will be incentives to "pump up" the student body partaking in the test.
He added educators will be made aware of the extra credit criteria and at-risk students will be identified and put through a MCAS prep program.
In other business, the committee also approved the purchase of a hydraulic iron worker for $22,935.
Tags: MCAS, McCann,
