HAGERSTOWN, MD (September 27, 2016) – The results from the second year of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Career (PARCC) tests have been released. The Maryland State Department of Education released numbers for Washington County Public Schools (WCPS) and the other school systems across Maryland, compiling results of assessments in the fall of 2015 and spring of 2016. The results reflect testing for elementary, middle and high school students. The range of scores is from 5, which reflects students exceeding expectations down to 1, which reflects students not meeting expectations.

WCPS showed gains in math and English language arts at all levels compared to the initial results released in 2015. The results from English 10 show that 52.6 percent of test-takers met or exceeded expectations by scoring at performance level 4 or 5, an increase from 40.5 percent from last year. In middle school English language arts testing, WCPS improved 4.6 percentage points to 36.8 percent of participants meeting or exceeding expectations. The elementary school performance in English language arts showed an increase from 32.9 percent to 36.8 percent. The gains in math included an increase of 16.3 percentage points in Algebra II and 3.8 percentage points in Algebra I. Gains were also reported in elementary and middle school math, with 32.2 percent and 25.3 percent meeting or exceeding expectations, respectively.

Dr. Peggy Pugh, associate superintendent for curriculum and instruction for WCPS, is pleased with the results. “Given the changes at the national, state and local levels, we are happy to see steady growth. We certainly thank the Board of Education for its vision and the teachers and students for their efforts in teaching and learning. We want students to know how to learn and to engage in continuous learning. A new curriculum, created by teachers for teachers, is helping us transition instruction, so our students can perform successfully in and out of school.”