MRH students were tested in communication arts, mathematics, science and social studies. Score increases in all four subjects were common across the district, with several dramatic shifts in the percentage of students who are now scoring in the top two levels of the scoring system compared to the percentage scoring in the bottom two levels. “The rising MAP scores are the continuation of a trend we’ve seen the last few years,” said Margaret Scordias, director of assessment in MRH. “This year we’ve just seen a more dramatic increase than in the past.”

In communication arts and math, MRH and all Missouri school districts are required to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) on the MAP tests at each school level. AYP is a key element of the No Child Left Behind federal legislation, which requires that 100 percent of students are proficient in communication arts and math by 2014. In pursuing that goal, annual benchmarks have been put in place that measure a district’s progress.

Within each school are subgroups of students who fit into demographic categories classified by race, socio-economic status or some other distinguishing characteristic. For a category of students to meet AYP goals in 2006, 34.7% of the students in that group must have scored at the proficient level or above on the communication arts test, and 26.6% of students in a group must have scored at those top two levels in the mathematics test.

For the 2006 MAP tests, all six of the student subgroups at MRH High met the AYP academic benchmark in communication arts and math. At MRH Middle, all eight of the subgroups tested met the academic AYP requirements in the tests. At MRH Elementary, nine of the ten subgroups tested met the AYP academic requirements.

“I am perhaps most excited about the fact that in every school, our students in poverty met the standards set by No Child Left Behind,” said Linda Henke, superintendent of the MRH School District. “This is critical information about the power of our teaching because the major indicator of success in schools in the United States is how much money the parents make. We aim to eliminate socioeconomic status as a barrier to achievement.”