LONGMEADOW – Though springtime in school systems usually brings thoughts of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) testing, the fall season welcomes the results.  While Longmeadow Superintendent Marty O’Shea has an administration team in the process of reviewing the school systems results, he did release an email to parents explaining the tests that were taken in the spring, as well as where the main focus should lie.

His email reads, “You are probably not alone if you have had difficulty keeping up with recent changes to the state’s system of student testing and school accountability.”

According to O’Shea, students in grades three through eight took the “Next-Generation” MCAS test.  This test was created to set “a new performance baseline for students, schools, districts and the state.”  O’Shea noted that in regard to this test, it will not be possible to compare this year’s individual and school scores to the previous years.  High school students, however, took the original version of the MCAS that is “slowly being phased out,” according to O’Shea.

“It is also important to note that the standards measured by the Next-Generation MCAS are more rigorous than those measured by the older MCAS and I expected that test results will reflect that,” O’Shea wrote.

He continued to note that the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has reported that in certain grades and subjects, the percent of students scoring in the highest reporting categories will likely be parallel to the percent that scored in the top categories in the past.

Due to the more rigorous test that creates a higher standard for students to measure up to, O’Shea wrote that this means there will be fewer students achieving in higher categories, “not because student learning has decreased, but because the state is applying a higher standard.”  On the older version of MCAS, student performance was categorized as advanced, proficient, needs improvement or warning.  With the Next-Generation MCAS, student performance will be characterized as exceeding, meeting, partially meeting, or not meeting expectations.

O’Shea reiterated that the MCAS results are used to establish targets of improvement for classrooms, students, schools and the district itself.

“MCAS scores are an important measurement of our success.  Each year the scores give us reason to celebrate. I anticipate that once again the Longmeadow Public Schools will compare very favorably to the state,” O’Shea commented. “The scores should validate that our students are among the highest achieving students in the state.”

While he believes the scores are important, O’Shea ended his message to parents that the ultimate concern lies with the students themselves.

“We measure our success and children’s development in many different ways,” O’Shea reassured. “For example, a child’s love of learning, the relationships a child has with his/her peers and a child’s creative talents are all qualities that MCAS does not adequately measure, but are critical aspects of our educational mission.”

O’Shea told Reminder Publications that he expects there will be a presentation to the community at an upcoming School Committee meeting in November.